The end-of-life stage may be sudden and brief or it may last days to weeks.
Tips & Links
End of life refers to the final phase of a person’s life, usually a time of significant decline in physical and mental health, leading to the death of an individual. It can involve the last days, weeks, or months of life, where medical care often focuses on comfort and quality of life rather than curative treatment.
Learn More
- Learn about the different aspects of facing one’s end-of-life including type of care, personal decisions, informed consent, and available supports from Healthlink BC.
- Learn about end-of-life care to help you and those around you prepare and plan from Advance Care Planning Canada.
- Know that palliative care focuses on providing comfort and managing symptoms, while hospice care is a specific type of palliative care for people nearing the end of life.
Things You Can Do
- Talk with your physician, nurse practitioner, specialist, palliative care and hospice care professionals to answer your questions and concerns.
- Share your values, beliefs, and any concerns about end-of-life care, the dying process, death and after life preferences.
- Think about and voice your choices around personal boundaries and privacy and confidentiality during your final days and after your death.
- Find some peace of mind by sharing your feelings and exploring your end-of-life decisions with the people you trust.
- Record your wishes in documents such as your will, advance directive, and an advance care plan.
- Be sure to discuss your decisions with family, trusted individuals, and those responsible for specific tasks. While these conversations may be emotional, they are essential. how to arrange for ‘at home’ end-of-life care, if you choose and are not already connected to home care services from the Government of BC.
- Learn about the practical steps in taking care of someone at the end of their life including care for your caregivers, sleep, fluids, medications, mouth, and physical care from Virtual Hospice Canada.
- Review the steps to take if you are planning an at home death in BC from the Government of BC. This needs to be an ‘expected’ death, confirmed by your physician, a Do Not Resuscitate or No CPR order completed and supports in place.
- Explore the many resources for end-of-life support provided by Dying with Dignity Canada.
- Learn about MAiD and how to navigate the steps for medical assistance in dying from Dying with Dignity Canada. Things to consider are how to start the process (might take up to 7 days to coordinate), getting 2 assessments, and where and who you want to support the provision of MAiD.
- Your health care professionals and caregivers should all know if you have a Do Not Resuscitate or No CPR order, a written advance directive or Medical Orders for Scope of Treatment (MOST) document, are an organ donor, and/or if you have a written advance care plan.
Mywell Health has been designed to organize all your decision documents in one place – keep digital and print copies in My End-of-Life Decisions.
Tools & Videos
Categories: My End-of-Life Decisions, Senior
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