Advance Care Planning: A Gift You Give Yourself – and Your Loved Ones

NextAvenue.org – Lisa Cassaro and her husband were in their 40s, living in Orcutt, Calif., when they learned about advance care planning in the most difficult way possible. Jeff Cassaro had no apparent health issues when he suddenly broke his arm one day while unplugging a fan. Doctors diagnosed him with Stage 4 kidney cancer. He died 18 months later at the age of 49.

Even though both had children from a previous marriage, the Cassaros had not prepared their wills, never chosen a health care proxy (someone you choose to make health care decisions for you when you can’t do it) and never filled out an advance directive, a legal document explaining how you want medical decisions to be made if you can’t make them yourself.  Read more…