February 2018 Newsletter

Coaltion Members Gather for Dynamic November Meeting

NOv-7-1.jpeg

 

NOv-7-2_1.jpeg

Thank you to everyone who joined us for our November 7 member meeting! The session was full of thoughtful and productive conversations that generated innovative ideas for future initiatives. We updated members on current Coalition activities and used "design thinking" techniques as part of the break-out sessions, which generated creativity and collaboration among attendees. Members, generated dynamic ideas about engaging and educating the public about advance care planning.


Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Joins with The Conversation Project and Honoring Choices to train Associates in Advance Care Planning

e BCBSMA-Honoring-Choices-TCP.jpeg

According to our 2016 consumer survey, 85 percent of Massachusetts residents believe physicians and their patients should talk about end-of-life care, but only 15 percent have had these conversations. And less than half have named a health care agent. To help address this gap, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (BCBSMA) piloted the Healthy Blue Advance Care Planning Coaches program this fall to encourage its associates to engage in advance care planning conversations. After hosting successful lunch-and-learn sessions on advance care planning in-house, BCBSMA noticed that a highly motivated sub-set of attendees were interested in learning how to lead these sessions to help spread the word. Last October, 11 Blue Cross Blue Shield associates settled in for a three-hour training with Rev. Rosemary Lloyd, Advisor to Faith Communities at The Conversation Project, and Ellen DiPaola, Esq., CEO and President of Honoring Choices Massachusetts, to equip them to host their own advance care planning sessions for their fellow associates as well as within their communities.

Rosemary introduced the coaches to The Conversation Project’s starter kits, which are free, downloadable online resources that guide individuals through important conversations around their end-of-life wishes and preferences for care.

Coaches were also introduced to the Honoring Choices’ Getting Started Tool Kit, a do-it-yourself resource that provides step-by-step instructions for individuals to craft their personal health care plan.

“I was thrilled to team up with Rosemary,” said Ellen. “This is the first time we’ve combined the tools from Honoring Choices and The Conversation Project, giving the coaches a comprehensive approach to advance care planning that they can offer to their fellow associates.”

During the training, coaches leaned how to navigate what can sometimes be tough conversations and to identify times when it might be helpful for the group to pause and take a breath before continuing on. Many associates shared poignant personal stories about end-of-life planning with their loved ones and why the cause is so important to them.

“Talking about your end-of-life wishes might seem like an intimate subject for the workplace, but it’s an important topic that everyone can relate to on a deeply human level, creating stronger bonds amongst your coworkers,” Rosemary reflected.

Anna Gosline, Senior Director of Health Policy and Strategic Initiatives at BCBSMA, manages the program. “This initiative is such an important part of our overall work on advanced illness at Blue Cross,” she said. “On the one hand, it’s a natural evolution of the onsite advance care planning sessions we started hosting in 2015 with Honoring Choices and The Conversation Project. But having this internal team of coaches, spread across our three office sites and many different functional areas, is much more than that. It’s a reflection of how we’re making advance care planning a core part of our culture of well-being for all associates. And that kind of culture change will have ripple effects through to our relationships with our employer customers as well as our members.”

In the week before Thanksgiving, the newly-trained coaches hosted their lunch and learns at their offices. The events were interactive and the audiences were incredibly engaged and eager to learn how to properly plan for end-of-life care.

Recently, the coaches enjoyed a lunch with Andrew Dreyfus, President and CEO of BCBSMA, to celebrate the first year of the program. Throughout the lunch, coaches described advance care planning as a freeing process, one that can help relieve the worry about what might happen to them and their loved ones at end-of-life by clearly documenting each person’s individual wishes and values.

BCBSMA is looking forward to holding lunch and learns for the associates throughout 2018.


New Report Helps Hospitals Improve Care for Dementia Patients​​​

alzheimer-report.png

The Commonwealth’s Alzheimer’s and Related Dementias Acute Care Advisory Committee (ARDAC) explored challenges and opportunities to provide optimal care for those with dementia who are in acute care settings. The committee presented options for hospitals to improve both the care and experience for patients and caregivers.

The Department of Public Health (DPH), in collaboration with the Executive Office of Elder Affairs, is pleased to share the Committee’s final report: Recommendations from the Alzheimer’s and Related Dementias Acute Care Advisory Committee.


The Conversation Project Can Help Prepare You for National Healthcare Decisions Day on April 16

DecisionDay.jpeg

With National Healthcare Decisions Day just a few months away, The Conversation Project invites you to join their webinar where they will be highlighting the creative ways communities have celebrated the holiday in the past. The webinar will take place on Wednesday, February 21, 2018 at 3pm EST.


Third Annual Coalition Meeting Set for May 15​​

Audience.jpeg

Join the Coalition and hundreds of members and guests for our third annual summit, which will be held on Tuesday, May 15 at the JFK Library in Boston. Keep an eye out for additional details soon, and in the meantime, register here!