Preparing for a Better End: Expert Lessons on Death and Dying

A live & interactive discussion with Dan Morhaim, M.D. the co-author of Preparing for a Better End: Expert Lessons on Death and Dying for You and Your Loved Ones Join us for a discussion that will explore breaking down the barriers to a difficult but essential topic. Dr. Morhaim will help open this often-avoided discussion with loved ones while providing the information and guidance needed to ensure that deeply held values are reflected and honored.

From Johns Hopkins University Press www.thebetterend.com 

• danmorhaim@gmail.com

Links Below from Powerpoint click here to download 

ADVANCE DIRECTIVE SOURCES

• My Directives mydirectives.com 
• State and local health departments; Attorney General
• AARP https://www.aarp.org/caregiving/financial-legal/free-printable-advance-directives/
• Faith based
• Include in personal electronic medical record
•  MiMirx: mimirx.org        MyVax: myvax.com

Natural Green burials are here now in Maryland

• Complete natural burial center is now open in Baltimore County: Serenity Ridge Natural Burial Center and Arboretum  https://www.serenityridgemd.com/
• Reflection Park coming to Montgomery County
• Green Burial Association of Maryland (GBAM): https://greenburialmaryland.org/
• Portions of conventional cemeteries being converted

Questions Asked

• What is your definition of a Good death?
• free legal service from who where for advance directive?
• My husband tried to get Hospice care but was not eligible because he wanted to continue the one thing that made him feel good:  blood transfusions.  I was able to get him to the infusion center.  So, he could not have hospice care. If he had, I would not have had to go through having police and medical examiner involved when he fell to his death, suddenly, in the bathroom (an unobserved death).  I live in DC.  A friend of mine who lives in MD and whose husband had the same diagnosis as mine, also fell  and died in the bathroom.  He was also getting transfusions and did not have hospice care.  He had to be transported to Baltimore medical examiners.  Why do transfusions prevent folks from being hospice eligible?  It would help make death easier for lived ones.
• Is there an age limit for donating your organs. My husband died in 2016 and his donation was declined which wa s extremely offensive and hurtful to him.
• "Medicare pays for this in Wellness visits. It’s a revenue source for hospitals, why are they so opposed to having these conversations with their patients?
• Are we training new providers to deal with this?"
• I asked My Directives to share my document with my primary care physician. The primary care physician's policy is to not open links from external sources. He asked that I print a copy or send him a pdf. Because the document is a living one and changes from time to time I didn't trust myself to remember to share an updated copy with the physician and didn't want him operating from an old copy. So I responded that my wife and kids would have copies and could share with him if it became relevant. Any suggestions here?
• shifting likelihoods of what might happen shift to your own values and desires
• "MIDEO My Informed Decision On Video we think this might be what MIDEO might mean or close to meaning, the emergency doctor who created MIDEO last directive video, we think their name may be Dr Fernando Mirachi, not sure of spelling of their name"
  • Here is the link https://institutehcd.com/
• so who can complete advance director and health insurance pay and provide coverage can licensed social workers provide this care?
• WOW, what and amazing inspirational story
• when the decision is made by person then relief for conflict and confusion for family and loved ones
• Can't wait to read your book!  I'm so appreciative that you've done this for everyone.  Thank you!
• Can Dr. Morhaim comment on elder abuse and how it intersects the drafting of advance directives and powers of attorney, and shouldn't people have attorneys draft their POAs?
• My husband died of Glioblastoma and was 81 years old.
• If you already have had a lawyer write advanced directive does it confuse thing by adding additional documents like Mydirectives.com to your directives?
• Sometimes it is the doctors who want to try “just one more thing” that could somehow make a difference, and the family knows there is no chance.
• Advance directive Decision Tree list for people for advance directive
• no, misunderstood question you said health insurance would provide coverage for completion of advance directive then insert into medical records
• If someone with an advanced directive can no longer make decisions but has a POA giving authority to another person, how can changes in the AD be made?
• My employer had a speaker come this week from gilchrist cares in Maryland to speak about Advanced Care Planning
• when awake calm centered alert do not complete during crisis emergency
• Follow-up question:  It doesn’t seem logical that an advanced directive written before a dramatic change in health can’t be changed to adapt to that change.  Any suggestions about how to handle that situation?
• no, misunderstood the question we were asking, presenter said on his own personal advance directive Decision tree, presenter said a sister in law or some one he loved and trusted passed away, so he had to go back and change his own personal advance directive Decision tree

Chat Transcript

12:04:23     From  C.Lee Cawley : Cathi Nelson is SO knowledgeable!

12:05:06     From  Adele Logan-Galen : I am so looking forward to this!  Thanks Steve.  Adele Logan-Galen, Smooth Move Managers

12:07:23     From  Steve Gurney - ProAging Community : Dr. Morhaim's wiki page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_K._Morhaim

12:07:29     From  Martha Cooper   to   Hosts and panelists : Why do we say ‘death and dying’ rather than ‘dying and death’? Elizabeth Kubler Ross?

12:08:44     From  Jacke Schroeder : Yes!

12:08:59     From  Elizabeth MagallonFleury   to   Hosts and panelists : 1. Yes

12:20:08     From  Steve Gurney - ProAging Community : We have a discussion coming up on May 19 with a women who was on hospice and is now living independently! https://www.retirementlivingsourcebook.com/events/real-life-story-an-amazing-healthcare-recovery

12:21:47     From  C.Lee Cawley : My sister is very sick but she is on Dialysis and if she decides on hospice care they won't give that to her so she thinks that is -her words - like suicide.  Is there ANY way to give hospice care and continue dialysis?

12:25:14     From  Matt Brewington : Do you see a path where people have to complete an advance directive to receive Medicare benefits?  What are the hurdles?

12:25:40     From  Steve Gurney - ProAging Community : https://mydirectives.com/

12:26:16     From  Steve Gurney - ProAging Community : https://www.aarp.org/caregiving/financial-legal/free-printable-advance-directives/

12:27:03     From  Laura Heinrich : will we get the slides in the recording?  I can't write fast enough

12:27:32     From  Gary Wederspahn : Do you agree with PAD or MAID end-of-life options?

12:27:50     From  Leslie McTyre : Ditto - slides are great - please!

12:28:15     From  Cindy Scharf : slides are going by too fast

12:28:34     From  Jacke Schroeder : I take photos of the slides with my phone.

12:28:47     From  Adele Logan-Galen : If they fill out the amd online, does it have to be signed by a lawyer?

12:29:14     From  C.Lee Cawley : Thanks for answering my question!

12:30:10     From  Adele Logan-Galen : Put the AMD in a qr code on your phone?

12:31:00     From  Eileen Wolfington : https://gatewayeol.com/advance-care-planning-2/

12:31:39     From  Louise Wright   to   Hosts and panelists : Dialysis patients may go on hospice if it is considered necessary for the comfort of the patient, not directly related to his terminal condition that prompts hospice care.

12:33:06     From  Arthur Milholland   to   Hosts and panelists : What is the cost of green burial vs cremation?

12:34:20     From  Gary Wederspahn : National online storage of Advance Directives at united states living will registry

12:37:48     From  Steve Gurney - ProAging Community : Preparing for a Better End: Expert Lessons on Death and Dying for You and Your Loved Ones by Dan Morhaim (Author), Shelley Morhaim https://a.co/d/0YFM4tI

12:38:49     From  Steve Gurney - ProAging Community : Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect with Attorney Joe Musso https://www.retirementlivingsourcebook.com/videos/nursing-home-abuse-and-neglect-with-attorney-joe-musso

12:40:32     From  Steve Gurney - ProAging Community : National Healthcare Decisions Day is observed every year on April 16. https://nationaltoday.com/national-healthcare-decisions-day/#:~:text=National Healthcare Decisions Day is observed every year on April 16.

12:41:18     From  Arthur Milholland   to   Hosts and panelists : Are Dr Morhaim’s slides available, with active links?

12:45:50     From  Tracy Sprauer   to   Hosts and panelists : Thank you SO much! What a comprehensive and cogent presentation of an important topic.

12:47:54     From  Matt Brewington : This may sound odd, but what is the best state to die?  In other words, what state has the best laws for the dying to have their own choices and state laws not hamstringing providers?

12:51:14     From  Leslie McTyre : What have you said to patients who are totally conscious and dying only with you around?  Have you prepared to guide a patient beyond his death into the light?

12:51:29     From  Gary Wederspahn : Resource for End-of-life dementia care: https://finalexitnetwork.org/services/supplemental-advance-directive-for-dementia-care-sadd/????

12:54:20     From  Gary Wederspahn : Nearly all of the topics on this webinar are also covered on  https://www.thegooddeathsocietyblog.net/

13:00:22     From  Leslie McTyre : Valuable book!  Getting it!  THANKS to both Dan and Steve.

13:00:33     From  Elizabeth MagallonFleury   to   Hosts and panelists : Thank you for this frank and enlightening discussion

13:03:32     From  Gary Wederspahn   to   Hosts and panelists : Outstanding webinar, many thanks!

13:03:46     From  Tracy Sprauer   to   Hosts and panelists : What the health insurance will cover is the advance directive conversation with your PCP. This is a good use of the medicare "wellness visit"

13:04:55     From  Adele Logan-Galen : Does he work with end of life doulas?

13:06:14     From  Jennifer Brown : do you think it today's political climate could legislation be passed requiring seat belts?