Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Stresses Importance of Advance Directives on National Healthcare Decisions Day

Friday, May 09, 2008


NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ -- Although hospital staff routinely informs patients about their options regarding advance directives and living wills as required by law, only a small minority of individuals actually execute an advance directive.  As a result, the American Hospital Association has designated April 16, 2008 as the first-ever National Healthcare Decisions Day.  The day seeks to focus attention on this issue by encouraging health care providers to increase awareness of the need for advance health care planning.

 

According to the Reverend John DeVelder, director of Pastoral Care Services at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (RWJUH), advance directives are important to have because they help family members make informed decisions about a loved one’s care if he or she is ill, incapacitated and unable to communicate.

 

“It is important to have because it eliminates confusion over what your loved one truly wants,” DeVelder explained.  “Having an advance directive helps ensure that your autonomy is valued and that your decisions matter.”

 

An advance directive essentially is a written document that allows individuals to express what their health care choices would be in the event that they cannot express their wishes or speak for themselves.  Advance directives come in two main forms:

  • A health care power of attorney (or proxy, agent or surrogate) documents the person you select to be your voice for your health care decisions if you cannot speak for yourself.
  • A living will documents what types of medical treatments you would or would not want performed at the end of life.

 

Hospital personnel and health care providers are required by law to inform patients of their rights with regard to advance directives and living wills, but that does not require an individual to have one in place before receiving treatment.

 

Debra Good, director of Case Management at RWJUH, notes that when choosing a proxy who has health care power of attorney, it is important that the proxy has a true understanding of what his or her role is.

 

“The key is communication,” Good explains.  “If someone has not communicated his or her wishes with their family members or the designated proxy, he or she cannot be sure that his or her living will or advance directive will be carried out.”

 

DeVelder stresses that advance directives are not just for the elderly or severely ill.

 

“No matter how old you are, you really need to have one,” DeVelder says.  “If something catastrophic should happen, you want to make your wishes known.”

 

Moreover, having an advance directive can alleviate tension among family members when attempting to make decisions about the care of a loved one who may be incapacitated.

 

“We sometimes see the adult children in a family disagree over what should be done,” Good notes.  “The advance directive helps minimize the confusion.”

 

Another important thing to remember is to have a copy of the advance directive available to health care providers before having a major surgery or upon admission to a hospital.

 

“Sometimes we will have a patient say, ‘Oh, I have one – it’s in the (bank) vault,’” Good said.  “We just need the copies we do not need the originals.  We cannot make assumptions about people’s care.”

 

Staff from RWJUH’s Pastoral Care and Case Management departments will be offering an informational display in the courtyard area of the hospital from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. during National Healthcare Decisions Day.  For more information about advance directives, contact the Pastoral Care Department at RWJUH at 732-937-8704. 

About Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital

Selected as one of four hospitals nationwide to offer the world's first self-contained implantable artificial heart, Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (www.rwjuh.edu) is a 600-bed academic medical center and the principal hospital of UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Brunswick, NJ. Robert Wood Johnson is an innovative leader in advancing state-of-the-art care in medicine. Its Centers of Excellence include cardiovascular care from minimally invasive heart surgery to transplantation, cancer care, and women's and children's care including The Bristol-Myers Squibb Children's Hospital at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital (www.bmsch.org). The hospital is also a Level 1 Trauma Center and serves as a national resource in its ground-breaking approaches to emergency preparedness.

The hospital has earned significant national recognition for clinical quality and patient safety. Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital is ranked among the top 50 hospitals in the nation for both heart and heart surgery and respiratory disorders, according to U.S.News & World Report's 2008 ranking of "America's Best Hospitals." The American College of Surgeons' Commission on Cancer has rated Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital among the nation's best comprehensive cancer centers. The Leapfrog Group rated Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital as one of the 50 exceptional U.S. hospitals, as published in Consumers Digest magazine. Harvard University researchers, in a study commissioned by The Commonwealth Fund, identified Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital as one of the top 10 hospitals in the nation for clinical quality. Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital is also a recipient of the prestigious Magnet Award for Nursing Excellence for more than 10 consecutive years.


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