Developing a multidisciplinary brochure to teach patients and families about life-sustaining treatments

In an effort to comply with the Patient Self-Determination Act hospitals have scurried to develop patient education emphasizing patients' rights to accept or refuse medical treatments and to complete Advance Directives available in their state. Despite efforts at patient and family education, nurses report family difficulty in making end-of-life decisions because they have not fully clarified their values with regard to life-sustaining treatments, making decisions in crisis situations difficult. A brochure that discusses life-sustaining treatments along with Advance Directives is needed to help families understand this information before they reach a critical situation where anxiety makes decision-making difficult. The critical care nurse, clinical nurse specialist, or manager can initiate a multidisciplinary task force to coordinate the development of a brochure used to increase community awareness. The purpose of this article is to help staff develop a brochure that can address these issues.