DAYTONA BEACH, FLA. – (April 3, 2017) – This year, National Healthcare Decisions Day, which aims to help people across the United States understand the value of advance healthcare planning, will be a weeklong event, taking place April 16-22. In observance, throughout the month of April, Halifax Health – Hospice will present several free educational and informational activities for residents throughout Volusia County and in Orlando.
“National Healthcare Decisions Day allows organizations such as ours the opportunity to receive greater exposure in our ongoing efforts to raise awareness about the importance of adults having an advance care plan. People are often hesitant about creating a plan, but once they do, they really feel empowered,” explains Cathy Gallagher, a registered nurse and educational specialist for Halifax Health – Hospice.
Sometimes called an advance directive or living will, an advance care plan is a way for a person to plan ahead for their medical care in case they are not able to make their wishes known. Advance care plans can be made at any time in a person’s life. The plan advises healthcare providers on what a person wants if they are unable to speak for themselves, which helps to prevent questions and confusion among family members during that time, giving loved ones peace of mind.
Halifax Health – Hospice will host the following educational and informational activities in observance of National Healthcare Decisions Day:
April 12
- Four Townes Family YMCA, 280 Wolf Pack Run, Deltona – 11 a.m.
April 17
- Halifax Health Medical Center, France Tower and Fountain Building, 301 N. Clyde Morris Boulevard, Daytona Beach – 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
- Halifax Health – Hospice Port Orange Care Center, 3800 Woodbriar Trail, Port Orange – 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.
- Halifax Health – Hospice West Volusia Care Center, 1625 Veterans Memorial Parkway, Orange City –11 a.m. – 2 p.m.
- Halifax Health – Hospice Southeast Volusia Care Center, 4140 S. Ridgewood Avenue, Edgewater – 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.
- Halifax Health – Hospice Ormond Beach Care Center, 235 Booth Road, Ormond Beach – 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.
April 19
- Port Orange Family YMCA, 4701 City Center Parkway, Port Orange – 11 a.m.
April 20
- “My Doctor and I” Educational Program. Deltona Public Library, 2150 Eustace Avenue, Deltona – 5:30 p.m. – 7 p.m.
April 26
- Halifax Health – Hospice Orlando Office, 5210 S. Orange Avenue, Orlando – 11a.m. – 2 p.m.
April 28
- Ormond Beach Family YMCA, 500 Sterhaus Drive, Ormond Beach – 11 a.m.
During each of these activities, Halifax Health will distribute free copies of Five Wishes – an easy to use legal
document that allows adults of all ages to plan how they want to be cared for in case they become seriously ill.
Five Wishes covers the following topics:
- The Person I Want to Make Care Decisions for Me When I Can’t
- The Kind of Medical Treatment I Want Or Don’t Want
- How Comfortable I Want to Be
- How I Want People to Treat Me
- What I Want My Loved Ones to Know
Five Wishes is America’s most popular living will with more than 18 million copies in circulation. It assists those utilizing the document in expressing how they want to be treated if they become seriously ill and unable to speak for themselves. It is unique among all other living will and health agent forms in that it speaks to all a person’s needs, including: medical, personal, emotional and spiritual. Five Wishes also helps structure discussions with family members and physicians.
For more information about advance healthcare planning, call 386.322.4701.
Halifax Health
Recognized by The Joint Commission as a Top Performer on Key Quality Measures, Halifax Health serves Volusia and Flagler counties, providing a continuum of healthcare services through a network of organizations including a tertiary hospital, community hospital, psychiatric services, a cancer treatment center with four outreach locations, the area’s largest hospice, a center for inpatient rehabilitation, primary care walk-in clinics, a walk-in clinic specializing in women’s health, two community clinics, three children’s medical practices, a home healthcare agency, and an exclusive provider organization. Halifax Health offers the area’s only Level II Trauma Center, Comprehensive Stroke Center, Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, Pediatric Emergency Department, Child and Adolescent Behavioral Services, complete Neurosurgical Services, OB Emergency Department and Level II Neonatal Intensive Care Unit that cares for babies born as early as 28 weeks. For more information, visit halifaxhealth.org.
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