Did you know that April 16th is National Healthcare Decisions Day (NHDD)? NHDD was founded in 2008 and is promoted by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) to highlight the importance of making Advance Directives. Advance Directives include much more than deciding what care an individual would or would not want; it starts with expressing preferences, clarifying values, identifying care preferences, and selecting an agent to express healthcare decisions if an individual is unable to speak for themselves.1
Unfortunately, many adults do not have advance directives. According to one study, only 38.7% of adults have one.2 As a physician, you can greatly assist your patients in their directive decision making. We encourage you to:
- Read the March 2023 CAPsules article The Importance of an Advance Directive Cannot be Overlooked
- Counsel your patients on this topic and encourage them to complete an advance directive
- Set an example and complete one for yourself
There are numerous resources available on this topic, including:
Guidance on getting the conversation started with your patients:
Advance healthcare directives forms. Although a specific form is not required in California, California’s Office of the Attorney General developed a sample Advance Healthcare Directive form: https://oag.ca.gov/system/files/media/ProbateCodeAdvanceHealthCareDirec…
CMS fact sheet on billing and coding for Advance Care Planning: 2023-03-09-MLNC | CMS
1NHDDCaseStatement.pdf (theconversationproject.org)
2https://www.healthaffairs.org/doi/10.1377/hlthaff.2017.0175