The Conversation Project
Rebecca Bechhold MD, the chief medical officer at Hospice of Cincinnati, answers a Local 12 viewer question by explaining The Conversation Project, and when to have end-of-life conversations.
What is The Conversation Project?
“The conversation project is really an initiative to get patients and families to discuss what their wishes are for end-of-life care . . . so everyone knows what you want,” Dr. Bechhold tells Local 12’s Liz Bonis.
End-of-life Conversations: When is the Best Time?
While it is always important to have these conversations whenever they come up, experts also suggest revisiting them when the opportunity arises.
They recommend following the “five Ds,” or timely situations to come back to discussing death:
- Death: If someone else dies
- Divorce: A divorce in the family
- Decade: When a decade has passed
- Decline: If there is a decline in a condition
- Diagnosis: A serious diagnosis
Visit the Hospice of Cincinnati website for more information on The Conversation Project.
Learn more about end-of-life conversations in our Health Library: