The Conversations Worth Having
If you couldn’t speak for yourself tomorrow, who would speak for you?
And just as importantly, would they know what to say?
They might know you better than anyone. But would they know what medical treatments you would want? What would make you comfortable? Who would you want around you?
Those can be difficult questions to answer even when you’re making decisions for yourself. Having to answer them for someone you love, especially during an emergency or serious illness, can be even harder. In that moment, “I think this is what they would want” is a very different feeling from “I know this is what they want.”
Five Wishes can help turn that uncertainty into an answer.
It starts with conversations most of us haven’t had. Who do you trust to speak for you? What does being comfortable mean to you? Are there treatments you would or wouldn’t want?
There aren’t universal right answers to those questions. They’re personal. Five Wishes gives you a place to put your answers into words, so the people who matter to you aren’t left trying to figure them out.
And some of the answers might surprise you. Maybe being comfortable means having your favorite music playing. Maybe there is someone you need beside you or a spiritual tradition that’s important to you.
Those things can matter too. Five Wishes is designed to include medical, personal and spiritual wishes, including the care you want, what makes you comfortable and how you want to be treated.
That’s what makes Five Wishes different. It isn’t only about what happens medically. It’s about how you want to be cared for.
Five Wishes is for adults of any age. You don’t have to wait until you’re older or facing a serious diagnosis to think about it. Making these decisions when there isn’t an emergency gives you time to think about what matters to you and talk about it with the people you trust.
You don’t have to figure it all out on your own, either. All Care Health Center has a trained Five Wishes specialist who can guide you through the process, answer your questions and help you create your plan.
Because if the day ever comes when someone else has to speak for you, the most important thing you can give them isn’t a guess. It’s knowing what you want.
To schedule an appointment with All Care’s Five Wishes specialist, call (712) 325-1990 or ask your provider for a referral.
On behalf of our patients, All Care wishes to thank the Southwest Iowa Mental Health and Substance Use Fund and its sponsorship by the Community Foundation for Western Iowa for helping to support Five Wishes professional development, community awareness, and ultimately the assistance needed to bring the Five Wishes program to All Care.