BMO Private Bank in Barrington, invited Be@Ease to share information to staff about the importance of having an advance directive. Staff were encouraged to complete their own plans, that will provide direction of their healthcare wishes to loved ones if they are unable to speak for themselves, and share this important information with clients. Be@Ease encourages anyone over the age of 18 to have an advance directive. This is a wonderful gift we can give to our families.
Be@Ease Presents to the Barrington Area Community Foundation
A special thank you to the Barrington Area Community Foundation for inviting Be@Ease to present at it’s board meeting in December, 2015. Members of the board provided their support by connecting Be@Ease with other non-profit organizations, as well as scheduling presentations for staff within their companies. Networking is so helpful in providing new opportunities for Be@Ease to share advance care planning information.
Additional presentations are being scheduled. We appreciate the continued support from Barrington businesses and non-profit organizations. Thank you!
Barrington Library Offers Be@Ease Workshops
To receive information about advance care planning or ask questions about completing your Five Wishes, workshops will be available at the Barrington Library. Meetings have been scheduled in the Zimmerman Room (side B) on:
- Thursday, September 17th (10am – noon)
- Wednesday, November 11th (2pm – 4pm)
- Tuesday, December 8th (7pm – 8pm)
JourneyCare CEO Featured in TEDx Event
Sarah Bealles, JourneyCare’s President and CEO, was a featured speaker for the Barrington Area Library’s first-ever TEDx event on October 1, 2015.
TEDx was created in the spirit of TED’s mission, “ideas worth spreading” and supports independent organizers who want to create a TED-like event in their own community. TEDx focuses on Technology, Education/Entertainment and Design to tie together local ideas on a broad range of issues.
Bealles’ talk, “Living is More Than Not Being Dead,” focused on the importance of end-of-life conversations and planning.
To view the video of the TEDx Talk, click HERE.
Be@Ease Partners with Local Association to Launch Educational Campaign
Communities across the country are launching programs to educate and encourage neighbors and friends to complete advance care plans. Advance directives allow people to document what healthcare treatments they would want if they are unable to speak for themselves.
In April, 10 churches in Arlington Heights, Ill., gave 11 presentations on advance care planning to more than 270 residents in the community. Using the materials developed by Be@Ease, the Arlington Heights Ministerial Association educated residents on the importance of having an advance care plan. A copy of Five Wishes – a form that can be used to document advance care plans was also given to all attendees. The events were promoted in local newspapers to encourage all residents of the community to attend.
Having conversations with family and loved ones about advance care planning is gaining momentum. National Healthcare Decisions Day celebrated its ninth anniversary on April 16. The day exists to inspire, educate and empower the pubic and providers about the importance of advance care planning. The goal of the initiative is to encourage patients to express their wishes regarding healthcare and for providers and facilities to respect those wishes, whatever they may be.
If you are interested in launching an advance care planning program in your community, please visit www.beatease.org. The tools and resources are available free of charge. The goal of Be@Ease is to encourage anyone 18+ to think about their wishes, put them in writing and share them with others If you would like more information on advance care planning, please contact Rachael Telleen at rtelleen@journeycare.org or (312) 912-2678.
Be@Ease and Clergy Help Bring Peace to Families in Times of Crisis
If on your way to work this morning you were injured in a terrible accident and doctors weren’t sure you would survive, would your family members know how to honor your final wishes?
According to a recent survey by the California Health Foundation, 60 percent of respondents said it was extremely important that their family not be burdened in making tough decisions about their care. However, 56 percent of respondents had not discussed their wishes.
Arlington Heights Ministerial Association has joined the Be@Ease campaign to help residents learn to talk about advance care plans so that if an emergency situation ever does arise, families are prepared.
Besides getting the conversation started, the Be@Ease campaign also provides access to Five Wishes©, a nationally recognized document that allows anyone 18 and older to share their wishes about the end of life. Once completed, the Five Wishes document is valid under the laws of 42 states, including Illinois.
Five Wishes ask people to discuss:
1. The person I want to make care decisions for me when I can’t
2. The kind of medical treatment I want or don’t want
3. How comfortable I want to be
4. How I want people to treat me
5. What I want my loved ones to know
Lynndah Easterwood Lahey, Executive Director, Escorted Transportation Service Northwest, supports the Arlington Heights Ministerial Association in its pursuit and promotion of the Five Wishes program. “We know it will make an impact on many individuals in the community,” she explained. ” As a nonprofit organization that provides volunteer-based transportation for our community’s seniors to their medical appointments, we will spread the word to our 300+ senior passengers.”
The Arlington Heights Ministerial Association, whose leaders often are called to guide a family through times of crisis, will be hosting 11 free seminars during Five Wishes Week, April 11-18 and April 25, to provide convenient opportunities and locations for residents to engage in conversation.
Five Wishes Week | SAT | MON | TUES | WED | THU | SAT | SAT |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
AHMA | 4/11 | 4/13 | 4/14 | 4/15 | 4/16 | 4/18 | 4/25 |
St. John UCC www.churchonthepark.com | 10 a.m. | 7 p.m. | |||||
Quest Church www.quest-church.com | 7 p.m. | ||||||
St. James Parish www.stjamesah.org | 10 a.m. | ||||||
First Presbyterian Church www.fpcah.org | 6 p.m. | ||||||
First United Methodist www.fumcah.com | 7 p.m. | ||||||
St. Simon's Episcopal www.saintsimons.org | Noon | ||||||
Southminister Presbyterian www.spcah.org | 4 p.m. | ||||||
Congregational UCC www.congucc.org | 10 a.m. | ||||||
St. Peter Lutheran (a.m.) www.fulllifeinchrist.org | 10 a.m. | ||||||
St. Peter Lutheran (p.m.) www.fulllifeinchrist.org | 2 p.m. |
June 25, 2014 Be@Ease Featured on Chicago Comcast Cable Program
An interview with Be@Ease Program Director, Syl Boeder and Program Benefactor, Bob Lee will be aired on Chicago Comcast Cable Channel 19 (CAN TV) during the next three days beginning June 25 at 9 pm, June 26 at 4 pm, and June 27 at 6:30 pm CST. Tune in and learn about the impetus behind and the development of Be@Ease. Be@Ease exists as a website whose purpose is to provide community leaders around the world with the tools needed to organize and conduct advance directive awareness campaigns of their own. Resources on the website include videos, sample presentations, letters and documents to assist communities in bringing attention and action to this important issue.
In addition to community organizing resources, Be@Ease provides guidance in walking individuals through the process of thinking about and documenting their end-of-life wishes by providing access to Aging with Dignity’s Five Wishes Advance Directive planning document.