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Making Sense Of Family Communication About And At The End Of Life: Family Communication Around End-Of-Life Planning And Decision Making, April R. Trees, Jennifer E. Ohs
Making Sense Of Family Communication About And At The End Of Life: Family Communication Around End-Of-Life Planning And Decision Making, April R. Trees, Jennifer E. Ohs
Saint Louis University Journal of Health Law & Policy
Families faced with end-of-life (EOL) decisions on behalf of a family member are charged with honoring a care recipient’s wishes, which may or may not be clear to them. The process of decision making is challenging for surrogate decision makers and their families, and it often results in suboptimal decisions that fail to meet the best interests of the patients, cause stress for family members, and burden the legal and medical systems. Effective family communication, something that legal representatives, medical professionals, and social workers are often in positions to influence, can enhance the quality of EOL care planning and decisions. …