1. Make sure you have an up-to-date will.
Your will is one of the most important documents you own. It provides clear direction for your family after you’re gone, when they’re making major decisions under stressful circumstances. When was the last time your will was updated? If it was years ago, you should arrange a meeting with your estate planning attorney to review your decisions. You might have overlooked a change that can affect your wishes, such as a move to another state, tax law changes, or the loss or addition of a family member.

2. Decide where the money goes.
Take some time to decide how you want to provide for the well-being of each of your family members. Don’t let your worries about fairness and equality discourage you. Simply start with the “big picture” items such as real estate, bank accounts, life insurance policies and retirement plan assets. This will help you prepare to meet with your estate planning attorney.

After you feel comfortable with your gifts for your family, you may begin to consider providing for Hospice & Palliative CareCenter and our mission to provide excellent health care in our communities. Within your estate, there are many assets, such as your IRA or life insurance, that can be used in whole or in part to help you make a big difference. Feel free to contact Ellen Coble at 336-331-1312 or ellen.coble@hospicecarecenter.org to learn about these options. Then, meet with your estate planning attorney to put your ideas into action.

3. Keep your loved ones informed.
Once you’re at peace with your decisions, gather your family and explain your choices. Help them understand your perspective to avoid any heartache later. Following are a few talking points to help you and your family feel more comfortable:

• Thank your family for recognizing what this meeting means to you.
• Emphasize your goals to be fair and your concerns for your loved ones’ futures.
• Detail the responsibilities, items and amounts you’ve chosen to give your family members and why.
• Express your desire to give to charity and your goals for your charitable gifts.

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With periodic flare-ups and dashes to the ER, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed when caring for a loved one with a lung condition, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

The COPD Management Tool, developed by the American Lung Association, empowers you to help your loved one prevent crises through better management of the disease. Several simple forms guide you in communicating with the doctor so you are all on the same page. Best of all, the forms take the guesswork out of decision making on those days when symptoms start to flare.

The tool has two components:

• The COPD Management/Action Plan. Complete this one-page document with the doctor. The first section, in blue, summarizes your loved one’s current lung conditions and the doctor’s basic treatment plan. The “COPD Action Plan” section provides at-a-glance descriptions of what to do, depending on how your loved one is feeling. It groups symptoms into good days (green), bad days (yellow), and emergency situations (red). Review these descriptions with the doctor so you and your loved one will know what to do in each case.
• The COPD Report Card. This two-page form helps you give your care providers a quick snapshot of how things have been going since your last visit. Before a routine check-up, use it to summarize symptoms. During a flare-up, refer to it to describe recent symptoms for emergency personnel.

The forms take only minutes to complete. And once the management and action plans are in hand, you and your loved one will find it much easier to know what to do when symptoms get worse. Now that’s a plan for staying out of the ER!

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