End-of-Life Care in Assistive Care: Patient-Centered Practices, Communication, and Legal/Ethical Duties

Advance Directive

A legal tool that allows a person to communicate their healthcare wishes in case they cannot speak for themselves.

Living Will

A written statement about which life-sustaining treatments a person would or would not want under certain conditions.

Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare

A legal designation of a surrogate decision-maker authorized to make healthcare decisions if the patient lacks capacity.

Do-Not-Resuscitate (DNR) Order

A medical order indicating that CPR should not be attempted if the patient has cardiac or respiratory arrest.

POLST

A portable medical order set for seriously ill patients that translates their goals into actionable treatment orders.

Surrogate Decision-Maker

An individual authorized to make healthcare decisions on behalf of a patient who lacks decision-making capacity.

Decision-Making Capacity

The clinical determination that a person can understand information, appreciate consequences, reason about choices, and communicate a decision.

CPR

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation; a life-saving technique used in emergencies when someone's breathing or heartbeat has stopped.

Palliative Care

Specialized care focused on providing relief from symptoms and stress of serious illness, at any stage of disease.

Hospice Care

Care for patients approaching the end of life that focuses primarily on comfort rather than cure.

Emotional Responses to Death

Feelings such as fear, anger, guilt, or withdrawal that individuals may experience when facing death.

Kübler-Ross Stages

A framework of emotional responses to dying: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, acceptance.

Therapeutic Communication

An approach emphasizing presence, listening, and validation in interactions with patients.

Cultural Needs

Communication styles, family roles, decision-making norms, and other cultural aspects that affect care.

Spiritual Needs

Concerns related to meaning, purpose, and relational aspects of life and death.

Informed Consent

The process through which a patient is provided necessary information to make an informed health care decision.

Postmortem Care

Care of the body and support of the family immediately after death.

Chain of Custody

The process of maintaining and documenting the handling of a patient's belongings after death.

Privacy in Postmortem Care

The practice of providing a respectful and confidential environment for families after a patient's death.

Cultural Sensitivity

Awareness and respect for cultural differences in end-of-life practices and preferences.

Validation

Recognizing and affirming a person's feelings without immediate attempts to fix them.

Advance Care Planning

The process by which individuals discuss and document their healthcare preferences in advance.

Family Dynamics

The patterns of interactions and relationships within a family impacting decision-making and grief.

Symptoms Management

The assessment and treatment of physical and emotional symptoms to improve quality of life.

Legal Documentation

The required recording of actions, decisions, and identifications involved in postmortem and healthcare processes.

Ethics Consultation

A process for addressing ethical dilemmas in healthcare decision-making.