Group urges signing of health care proxies
BY HOPE SALLEY
REVIEW PRESS
Liz Moran’s 42-year-old husband recently had a critical heart attack.
Fortunately, he recovered, but she found out later from her husband that what she thought he wanted wasn’t his wishes at all.
The End-of-Life Coalition, based in Bronxville, is using this true story about an area couple to promote the importance of health care proxies so that situations like this are avoided. The group is planning an upcoming, new, grass roots campaign called “Everybody Needs a Proxy,” which aims to educate the public about health care proxies.
The coalition identifies and tries to fill gaps in end-of-life services throughout the community.
Christina Staudt, the president of the organization and a Bronxville resident, said its imperative that people think now about what they would want done if they were to ever become incapacitated. She has seen experiences first hand as a patient care volunteer for the Jansen Memorial Hospice in Tuckahoe.
In light of the recent Terri Schiavo case, more people are beginning to understand the importance of having advanced directives.
“The Terri Schiavo case occurred in large part because Mrs. Schiavo had no written advanced directives,” Staudt said. “It (proxy) is precisely to help avoid a situation such as this that we promote the signing of health care proxies.”
Staudt said there aren’t enough people informed about proxies.
“In New York State, as typically around the country, only 20 to 30 percent of the adult population has signed health care proxies. There is a clear gap between a readily available tool and the number of people taking advantage of it,” she said.
In Bronxville, the Community Fund granted $5,000 and Lawrence Hospital donated about $3,000 to the organization for the cost of printing 10,000 proxy forms for the campaign on April 16. Staudt said she is hoping additional voluntary contributions are made by individuals and businesses in the community. Filling out a proxy is imperative for all people, regardless of their age, she added.
“The proxy enables you to name a person who acts as your agent if you cannot make decisions for yourself,” she said. “It is most helpful to discuss with your agent what your wishes would be regarding treatment and life support should you be in a persistent vegetative state, as was Terri Schiavo, but it is not advisable to have a detailed ‘living will’ because no one knows exactly what the medical situation will be in this kind of tragic occurrence.”
She said that in the Schiavo case, part of the controversy revolved around artificial nutrition and hydration, which the courts have ruled is a kind of medical treatment, but which arouses strong emotional response among many people. She said residents should put detailed information on their proxies.
“You can — and should — specify, ‘my agent knows my wishes regarding artificial nutrition and hydration.’ With this statement, the agent is free to use his or her good judgement based on his or her knowledge of what the patient’s wishes would have been.”
Eastchester councilwoman and Bronxville resident Vicki Ford also encouraged residents to fill out health care proxies during a town board meeting on April 5. She said the campaign is a good way to continue to get people’s attention.
“We’ve all been made so aware,” she said regarding end-of-life issues. “It’s important to have something planned in your own statement. That’s extremely important.”
Bronxville Mayor Mary Marvin and David Morse, president of the Community Fund, will join Staudt at the official kick-off for the campaign on April 16 from 1 to 3 p.m. outside of Citibank at 95 Pondfield Road in Bronxville.
Volunteers will assist people on a case-by-case basis, Staudt said. She hopes to have similar events in Tuckahoe and Eastchester, and in other communities in the county.
(Original publication: April 14, 2005)