Choices at the end of life are often the hardest ones to make. Encourage your loved ones to prepare advance directives and share their end-of-life wishes before they are admitted to the hospital. All too often, patients do not share these important decisions with their family or physician; as a result, family members are not sure what to do when their loved ones are unable to communicate for themselves. If there is no living will or other advance directive, it may even be unclear who has the right to make these decisions for the patient.

Please take the time to read more about the various advance directives available, and don't be afraid to talk openly about end-of-life care with your loved ones. While it may be uncomfortable and even upsetting to think about, it is an extremely important conversation to have before hospitalization ever occurs.

If you find yourself facing tough choices for a family member who cannot communicate for him or herself, Mission Hospital's Ethics Committee can support you in talking through these decisions. You can contact the committee by calling the hospital operator (dial "0") and asking for the on-call chaplain. The chaplain will contact a committee member who will set up a time to speak with you about your concerns.