Advance Care Planning puts you in control by sharing your wishes with those who will make the tough decisions if you cannot.

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AARP index of free advance care planning forms by state

For yourself and your family members:

TheConversationProject.org is a great place to begin thinking and talking about what you do and don’t want for your advanced illness care.  It offers a step by step guide to help you consider your options and talk with those you want to help you get exactly the care you want, no more and no less.

For healthcare providers:

While every healthcare provider will handle difficult conversations at some time, the palliative providers specialize in these vital discussions to help patients receive exactly the care they desire at end of life. These resources for palliative providers are helpful for all specialties, especially primary care:

Building Clinicians’ Communication Skills for Goals of Care Discussions Univ. of Virginia – interactive website with videos, scenarios and resources

Stanford University online Palliative Care curriculum – entire website

A few specific resources from the Stanford PC website which are especially helpful:

• Do’s and Don’ts  for code status discussions for moderate and high illness burden levels
• Communication Resources – while we may not be the first to break bad news or discuss prognosis (hopefully!) this page offers many case studies and specific phraseology for discussing difficult health situations