Five Wishes As An Advance Planning Tool

About the Program

Category: Civic Education and Public Information (Best in Category)

Year: 2009

Baltimore County Department of Aging (BCDA) purchased 10,000 customized copies of “Five Wishes”, a user-friendly advance directive document produced by Aging with Dignity. Aging with Dignity is a non-profit organization whose mission is to help individuals and their families plan for and receive the care they deserve. BCDA also became a state liaison for National Health Care Decisions Day 2008. This first time event was a national campaign to encourage individuals to do their advance planning. BCDA utilized this day to launch Five Wishes through a joint press conference hosted at Greater Baltimore Medical Center. All 19 senior centers of BCDA became community distribution points and scheduled informative seminars and videos to encourage use of the Five Wishes document. Russian, Korean, and Spanish translations were also available. In November, 2008 BCDA held their annual Advocacy Conference and the wrap up of the campaign. This year’s conference was entitled “Dignity and Compassion: A Multi-Disciplinary Approach to End of Life Decisions.” Sessions throughout the day focused on advance planning and dignity and compassion for those dealing with end of life.