Hunter College Nursing Students on National Healthcare Decision Day
Today is National Healthcare Decision Day–a time to make sure that you and your loved ones have documentation confirming who will be your health care proxy or agent in the event that you are unable to make your own health care decisions. Today, these fabulous Hunter College School of Nursing students are at the Brookdale Campus, talking with people about “advance directives” and helping them to complete a health care proxy form, living will, and other forms to ensure that people’s preferences regarding treatment are respected. Other students will be joining them throughout the day. Tomorrow, the students will do the same thing at the Main Campus on Lexington and 68th Street in NYC.
If you can’t get there, go to the web site for the National Healthcare Decision Day campaign at www.nhdd.org/ad/ for information and resources about these issues. And remember to tune in to Healthstyles this Thursday night from 11:00 to 11:30 on WBAI, 99.5 FM, NYC (www.wbai.org) to hear my Hunter colleague Dr. Vidette Todaro-Franceschi, PhD, RN, and lawyer Tina Janssen-Spinosa of the New York Legal Assistance Group talk about these issues.
As yesterday’s events in Boston demonstrated, you never know when you might need a health care proxy, so why wait?
These fabulous Hunter nursing students didn’t wait. They have theirs completed and have planned the two-days of information sharing at the College to help others do the same.
Diana J. Mason, PhD, RN, FAAN, Rudin Professor of Nursing
