National Healthcare Decisions Day: An Opportunity to Plan for Advance Care

National Healthcare Decisions Day, April 16, 2016, is a good time to make preparations for your care in the event of an unforeseen medical crisis.

The FCCB provides resources to assist with advance care planning. Designating a health care surrogate and providing guidance for end-of-life decisions is the best way to ensure that morally acceptable procedures are followed if you become incapacitated or unable to express your own wishes in the event of a medical emergency.

Three items, approved by the bishops of Florida, are particularly useful:

• A Catholic Introduction to End-of-Life Planning is a brochure to assist you as you begin your discussions with family, friends, health care providers and clergy.
• The Catholic Declaration on Life and Death (CDLD) combines a designation of health care surrogate and living will into one document and is designed to be completed and shared with your health care provider(s).
• Understanding the Catholic Declaration on Life and Death (UCDLD) is the companion to the CDLD and addresses common concerns and questions.

All the documents are available for downloading and printing from the FCCB website in both English and Spanish.