National, state and community organizations are leading a massive effort to highlight the importance of advance healthcare decision-making — an effort that culminated in the formal designation of April 16 as National Healthcare Decisions Day (NHDD).
National Healthcare Decisions Day was created to inspire, educate and empower the public and healthcare providers about the importance of advance care planning. NHDD is an initiative to encourage patients to express their wishes regarding healthcare choices and for providers and facilities to respect those wishes, whatever they may be.
As a participating organization, the Tri-County Regional Ethics Committee (TREC), an arm of the New Jersey State Ombudsman Office, provides information and tools for the public to talk about their wishes with family, friends and healthcare providers, and execute written advance directives in accordance with New Jersey state laws. These resources will be available at a Free Community Health Fair to be held at the Virtua Health & Wellness Center located at 401 Young Avenue, across from Wegmans, in Moorestown on Tuesday, April 16 from 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Guests will receive complimentary health screenings and information about advance care planning. Health screenings will include blood pressure and blood sugar, eye and hearing exams, balance tests, nutrition counseling, massages and much more.
Highlights of NHDD include a presentation at 3 p.m. by Dr. Stephen Goldfine, chief medical officer for Samaritan Healthcare & Hospice, entitled “Think, Talk, Act — Your quality of life depends on it!” along with educational sessions provided by local social workers and elder law attorneys to review and understand the “Five Wishes” advance directive document. Social workers and attorneys will be available throughout the NHDD event.
“As a result of National Healthcare Decisions Day, many more people in our community can be expected to have meaningful conversations about their healthcare decisions and complete reliable advance directives to make their wishes known,” said NHDD co-chair Robert Keltos, esquire of Marlton.
“Fewer families will have to struggle with making difficult healthcare decisions in the absence of guidance from the patient, and healthcare providers will be better equipped to address advance healthcare planning issues before a crisis and be better able to honor patient wishes when the time comes to do so”, Keltos said.
For more information about National Healthcare Decisions Day, please visit www.nhdd.org. To pre-register for an educational session with a social worker and elder law attorney, contact Robert Keltos, Esquire at (609) 516–0506 or robkeltos@keltoslaw.com. Sessions will be available every 30 minutes between 1:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
