You want to help your patients, clients and their families to have conversations and make decisions about end of life, death, and dying. How can you do this better? Courageous Honesty is what you need first. According to Zenith Virago , well known and experienced Deathwalker from the Natural Death Care Centre. ‘Courageous honesty, coming…
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A glossary of keywords you should know around Advance Care and end of life planning Acute pain Pain that results from something recent eg new injury or surgery Adjuvant medications Medications that are given for reasons other than solely pain relief. Advance care directive Advance care directives tell other people what the…
We know that although ageing and dying are inevitable, they can be incredibly hard. Life’s irreversible changes take a deep toll on our bodies and minds. We bring real meaning to ageing and dying But at Touchstone Life Care, we know ageing and dying can also bring real meaning and purpose. Not only to our own…
Advance Care Plans are not written by lawyers or doctors. They are written by ordinary people like you. So you do not need to use legal or medical jargon. However, doctors and other medical staff play an important role in putting your Advance Care Plan into practice. But how do they actually do this? Read…
Deciding on a Residential Aged Care Facility is an incredibly tough, yet very important decision to make. People often find themselves overcome by the options, and without the guidance to be able to make an informed choice. Here are the top seven things to consider before choosing an aged care facility. 1. Have you been…
The idea of capacity when it comes to decision making is complex. The word is not well understood, and it’s not as simple as having capacity or not having capacity. Health professionals may say someone “has” or “has not” capacity, meaning they can or cannot make decisions, yet this is often unhelpful as there are…
Working as a doctor, I have seen first hand what happens when we don’t face up to our mortality. The sad truths about hospital that no one tells you One night when I was on duty a 95 year old gentleman came into our hospital with severe flu and pneumonia. He caught the flu from…
If you’re keen to know more about ageing and dying well, or just want to join like-minded people there are many organisations, events, conferences, plus some other fabulous resources we are keen to share with you. Make it easy on yourself and invite your friends and family to go along with you. Or meet new…
No matter what you call it No matter what you call it- an Advance Care Plan, Advance Care Directive, Management Plan, or a Living Will, all your clients aged 18 + will benefit from a regularly updated Advance Care Plan. But how can you fit all that into your busy day? Your role should not…
https://touchstonelifecare.com/ageing-and-end-of-life/talking-speech-pathology-food-families-feeding-tubes/?preview_id=1816&preview_nonce=373a0e8a12&post_format=standard&_thumbnail_id=5788&preview=true People with Dementia often “lose their swallow.” This is not often known yet it causes aspiration pneumonia (things going down the wrong way) and is often the reason doctors give a “Nil By Mouth” order. There are however things you can do. Here Colleen Kerr talks about her wish for a Masterfood…
