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Monthly E-Newsletter
July 2020
Let's Talk...and Stay Safe
We continue to offer virtual Advance Care Planning (ACP) conversations via phone calls (including group calls) and live audiovisual services (Zoom). A number of people have taken advantage of the service to either update their Advance Directive (AD) or create their first AD. 

To request a conversation:
Click here or call us at 616-421-4840

Gasping for Air:
Treating Respiratory Distress related to COVID-19

This is a highly informative conversation with Dr. Timothy Daum and Dr. Shelley Schmidt as they discuss exactly what happens to lungs and breathing when infected with COVID-19, as well what recovery looks like for those who were seriously ill with the novel virus. Educate yourself in order to make the care decisions, in advance, that best reflect your beliefs and values when thinking about quality of life.

First Step ACP Facilitator Training
Respecting Choices First Steps Advance Care Planning Facilitator Training is a two-part course consisting of four to six hours of online instruction and a full day of training with didactic and role play experience. Participants will learn effective communication and interview skills to empower individuals through the process of discussing, deciding, and documenting their healthcare preferences. This course is open to health care providers and interested community-based volunteers.

When : Monday, Sept. 14, 2020 and Monday, Nov. 16, 2020


National Healthcare Decisions Day (NHDD) 2.0: Virtual Death Cafe
When: Thursday, July 16, 2020 | 7 PM via Zoom

Led by: MCM Facilitators Dave Kampfschulte & Jill Peirce   

Change the end-of-life narrative from a negative to a positive death experience. The goal of a Death Cafe is "To increase awareness of death with a view to helping people make the most of their (finite) lives". To do this, we try to get people to think about death and share their feelings and experiences. We believe that our society doesn't make it easy to talk about death. This is what Death Cafe does - make time for people to talk and think about death and end of life decisions in a relaxed and safe setting (your own home)!  Registration for this virtual event is limited to 20 participants.

For more information:


To register, please contact Making Choices Michigan here:
info@makingchoicesmichigan.org or (616) 421-4840 

MCM Book Club, Virtual Book Discussion:
Final Gifts
When : Tuesday, August 25, 2020 at 7 p.m. via Zoom
Led by : MCM Facilitators Dave Kampfschulte & Jill Peirce 

Join us as we discuss “Final Gifts: Understanding the Special Awareness, Needs, and Communications of the Dying” by hospice nurses Maggie Callanan and Patricia Kelley.  Final Gifts provides tools for caregivers to help the dying person live fully to the very end. Learn the ways the dying communicate their needs, reveal their feelings, and choreograph their own final moments while discovering the gifts of wisdom, faith, and love the dying leave for the living to share.    

Register at:
i nfo@makingchoicesmichigan.org | (616) 421-4840

Our Impact
Thanks to our partners around the state who register their patient and client Advance Directives to the Virtual Integrated Patient Record (VIPR), we now have over 73,000 documents available in the secure Community Health Record! Registering these documents makes them available (only as appropriate) to a state-wide network of hospitals, primary, specialty, and allied care organizations, ensuring that healthcare providers will have immediate access to their patient's wishes.
Click here to learn more about registering your patient and client documents or to schedule your ACP appointment today!
Making Choices Michigan | Office: (616) 421-4840 | www.MakingChoicesMichigan.org