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MAYOR MURRAY PROCLAIMS
ANNUAL HEALTH CARE PROXY WEEKEND
Families Urged to Have Conversations & Complete Form
City Collaborates with Better Ending to Educate Community
(Worcester, MA, November 2006) – City of Worcester Mayor Timothy Murray will proclaim the 2006 Health Care Proxy Weekend at the upcoming November 21st City Council meeting in Worcester. November 23-26 will be designated as a time for residents of Worcester and beyond to discuss their end-of-life wishes and complete legal forms in advance of a medical crisis.
Recognizing that too few citizens in Central Massachusetts have ensured their final wishes through a Health Care Proxy, Mayor Murray has teamed up with the non-profit initiative Better Ending to encourage families to ask the important questions, and take action. The City of Worcester – concerned about the health and well being of its residents and city employees – supports the Better Ending initiative and has begun to educate Worcester City School and other City employees concerning advance care planning.
The Mayor’s proclamation targets the four-day Thanksgiving holiday weekend, a time of year when most American families gather together. Mayor Murray will present the proclamation at the Worcester City Council Meeting, held Tuesday, November 21, 2006 at 7PM. The public is invited to attend. The meeting will be televised on Government Access Channel 12.
“We hope that the Health Care Proxy Weekend will be recognized annually over each Thanksgiving holiday weekend,” confirmed Mayor Timothy Murray. “National news has shown us the painful truth of what can happen if our wishes aren’t known, and recorded. Our plans to educate City employees through the helpful materials created by Better Ending will continue, until one day, hopefully all residents of Worcester will have their conversations before the crisis, and their forms completed.”
The Better Ending initiative is a project of the Central Massachusetts Partnership to Improve Care at the End of Life, Inc. The Partnership is a community coalition of professional, civic, business and religious leaders committed to the vision that all persons in Central Massachusetts live their last days in this life as comfortably as possible, in the setting of their choice, according to their expressed wishes, while they and their families are supported by a caring community. Founded in 2002, The Central Massachusetts Partnership to Improve Care at the End of Life, Inc. is supported through the generosity of many grantors and in-kind donors including businesses, health care institutions, foundations, and individuals.
“We are thrilled to have Mayor Murray officially proclaim a Health Care Proxy Weekend,” said Christine McCluskey, Executive Director, and Central MA Partnership to Improve Care at the End of Life, Inc. “Better Ending has the tools, and the Mayor and his staff have the will to help our community avoid unnecessary and inappropriate end-of-life circumstances. Everyone should take the time to have their final wishes assured, if not for themselves, then for their loved ones.”
The Better Ending initiative is fully described on the web site www.BetterEnding.org. Downloadable publications – including the signature A Guide for a Better Ending -- are also available, as well as extensive information and resources for caregivers and employers. Through Better Ending’s Speakers Bureau, volunteers are available -- at no charge -- to appear before Central MA community groups and work places that are interested in learning about advance care planning and other end-of-life issues.
For further information, contact Christine McCluskey, RN, Executive Director, Central Massachusetts Partnership to Improve Care at the End of Life, Inc. at (508) 767-9877 or visit www.BetterEnding.org.
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