End-of-life directives the focus of workshops in Sonoma

Two upcoming workshops on advance healthcare planning will be held next month at Vintage House to help attendees learn how to formally express their wishes for end-of-life care.

Whether a person is in an end-of-life care situation or not, experts recommend everyone should put in writing how they would like to be cared for in the event they wind up in the hospital and cannot speak for themselves.

According to a survey conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation, 97 percent of people believe it’s important to put in writing their end-of-life health care wishes, and 37 percent have done it.

The sessions are being held around National Healthcare Decisions Day, which is on April 16, and encourages people to state how they want to be cared for so that there is no question and family members aren’t left making uncertain decisions.

Sponsoring organizations are Sonoma Valley Hospital, Vintage House, My Care My Plan: Speak Up Sonoma County, Hospice by the Bay, Healing at Home and the Sonoma Valley Community Health Center.

Taylor McCandless, a medical social worker with Healing at Home and co-chair of My Care, My Plan: Speak Up Sonoma County will lead two workshops on April 18 where participants can learn about the importance of advance care planning and how to put it in writing. On April 25, Taylor will lead two more sessions that will spotlight the Physician Order for Life Sustaining Treatment (POLST).

Joining McCandless at the Advance Health Care Directive workshop will be Jill Cordova Holt, a social worker with Hospice by the Bay, and for the POLST session another social worker with Hospice by the Bay, Alicia Garcia, will join McCandless.

All sessions will be held at Vintage House in Room 113 located at 264 First St. E. in Sonoma. There is no cost to attend, but seating is limited and pre-registration is encouraged. Register online at vintagehouse.org/events or by calling Vintage House at 996-0311.

Email Anne at anne.ernst@sonomanews.com.