Myra: Have a plan for the end of your life

"My favorite patients are those who are either at the beginning or end of life," says a doctor who, along with our parish nurse, is addressing my church's adult education class.

Thinking about this when I got home, I could see why this would be true. He pointed out to us that the end of life could be as much a cause for celebration as a normal successful birth.

Those of us not in the medical professions probably don't realize what a miracle it is when an infant is born healthy and whole with the requisite number fingers and toes and all systems ready to go. Having a normal, healthy baby is indeed something to celebrate. One of the points the doctor was making was that the end of life should be prepared for in much the same way the anticipation of a new birth is.

Many things can happen during a human life that prevent either the birth or the death from being anything but a joyful occasion. Sometimes a handicapped child can turn out to be a blessing and a joy. Sometimes a traumatic death comes far too soon.

But, assuming that all has gone reasonably well at all the developmental stages, everyone involved with caring for and about people is hoping that as much care and preparation for the end of life as for the beginning takes place.

Some people with a theatrical bent might think of their lives as a drama with death as the final act. Everyone has a story with a beginning, a middle and an end. Much of the time, things happen over which we don't have much control. One thing we do know for certain is that nobody lives forever. So, as far as we are able, we should be making some advance preparation for the end of life.

Because so many of us are living longer and more mobile lives, it became evident that Living Wills and other advanced directives were not enough to avoid confusion over what patients themselves wanted. So it was decided to adopt a form used by the Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (POLST) Programs that would help health care professionals "honor the treatment goals of their patients and ensure that physician orders are universal and transferable across care settings."

Each of us was given one of these so-called "POLST" forms and urged to fill it in and take it to our doctor.

All of us who have lost loved ones can understand how important it is, in order to avoid family arguments, etc., to have clear, easily-understood directives during such an emotional time.

As they say in all the commercials: "Talk to your doctor," this time about POLST.

Myra Furse is a columnist for the News Republic. "The Eye of the Beholder" runs each Thursday.