December 2, 2008

Plan Now to Participate in
National Healthcare Decisions Day 2009

We want to remind you about an exciting opportunity to promote advance healthcare planning in your community. April 16, 2009, has been designated National Healthcare Decisions Day (NHDD). This initiative, now in its second year, is a collaborative effort of national, state and community organizations committed to ensuring that all adults with decision-making capacity in the United States have the information and opportunity to communicate and document their healthcare decisions. This is a wonderful community outreach opportunity for members of Selected Independent Funeral Homes.

We hope that your firm will participate to raise awareness about these important issues. For more information or to sign up, visit www.nationalhealthcaredecisionsday.org, or contact Link/Freeman, Inc. for assistance. Link/Freeman is a partner in Selected's Management Assistance Program. Last year, they helped many Selected firms create personalized outreach programs for the National Healthcare Decisions Day event utilizing the theme "Your Life, Your Health, Your Decisions." Contact Kerry Ryan at Link/Freeman at 630-990-7768 or kryan@linkfreeman.com. More information about assistance for members from Link/Freeman is available at http://www.selectedfuneralhomes.org/support/healthcare.html.

The U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, in a 2003 article, “Advance Care Planning: Preferences for Care at the End of Life,” found that less than 50 percent of the severely or terminally ill patients studied had an advance directive in their medical record. Only 12 percent of patients with an advance directive had received input from their physician in its development. Between 65 and 76 percent of physicians whose patients had an advance directive were not aware that it existed.

In 2008, NHDD enjoyed participation by 76 national organizations and nearly 400 state and local organizations. Hundreds of thousands of people learned more about, and took action, on advance directives. The success of this event depends largely on activities at the local level. Please help us ensure that members of Selected Independent Funeral Homes are well represented on April 16, 2009.