essay

A Personal Response to End of Life Care

The Importance of Planning

            This paragraph will introduce the topic of end of life care. It will describe benefits to both the one who is dying and to friends and family members. This paragraph must include a brief statement which discusses why end of life planning is important to the writer at this present time. If each paragraph contains 100–200 words, the word count requirement will be met. This paragraph contains 131 words. Note that this is written in essay format rather than a numbered list. Direct quotes must not be included. If you choose to include direct quotes, your score will be reduced. Be sure to identify your source with a properly formatted citation and a corresponding reference entry if you include a direct quote, or information that is not considered common knowledge.

Advance Directives and Worldview

            This paragraph will discuss worldview concerns related to the end of life care. Think about questions such as:

·         How might I define a “good death” based on my worldview?

·         Does my worldview influence the way I address advance directives/end of life planning? Why or why not?

·         Does the Bible contain guidelines for thinking about advance planning and end of life care? If so, what are some of these guidelines?

Direct quotes must not be included. The only exception to this rule is the use of short Scripture references. Any direct quotes included will not be used in the final word count. If you choose to include direct quotes, be sure to identify your source with a properly formatted citation and a corresponding reference entry.

Sample Plan

            Because this is a very personal assignment, you are not required to disclose information you are not comfortable sharing with your instructor. As noted in the outline, you may complete this assignment in the “first person” (as if you are answering for yourself), or you may create a hypothetical person for whom you will answer these questions. Tell how you, or the hypothetical person, might respond to the 5 important questions related to end of life planning:

1.      If I am fortunate enough to live a long life, I would like my final days on earth to include…

2.      If or when I am not able to make decisions for myself, I name <BLANK> as my health care proxy.

3.      I request that the following life-saving measures be used if needed. I do not want the following measures implemented.

4.      If I am in pain, I would like the following care…

5.      I want my loved ones to know…

Final Thoughts

            Use this paragraph to describe your thoughts related to this assignment or to end of life planning in general. Indicate whether or not you intend to create an end of life plan for yourself. Will you encourage your loved ones to do so as well? Remember that the entire essay must contain at least 400 words, but not more than 800 words. Respond to the topics contained here with depth and detail.

            A title page and abstract are not necessary. However, if you include information that should be cited, include a reference page to identify your source or sources of information.