b"PALLIATIVE CAREFamilies deserve the exact same information, and maybe even more, on what the caregiver role is going to be than the patient. My recommendation is that families find their voice, that they attend appointments, not just when things are not going well, but always if they can, and that they come from the Both hope and grief are veryme. Oh, you must be positive. Don'tback seat of the car to the front. protective through an illness journeysay those things, lets sugarcoat and through life. But both of themeverything. I would have spent thisIts so important to seek out only work to our advantage iflast year or months differently had Iinformation. Sometimes families think simultaneously they are matched toknown. We all have a right to knowthat the health care system is going the reality of what's happening. Wherewhen weve entered into the last yearto organize everything and give them we run into trouble is when someoneor two of our lives. And it is possible toinformation when they need to know or their family member is hoping forpredict that for people.it. But our health system isnt set up something that's unrealistic. that way, and thats rarely the case.We talk too much about battlesFor example, if someone still thinkswith disease. It's unfair because itIn long-term care, its important to they're in the early part of an illnessbecomes a form of silencing forhelp residents to continue to live a life and they're hoping for a cure, whenpeople. Patients have told us thatthat is meaningful on their terms while really they're at a later stage ofthat when people around them aresupporting them and their families their illness and there is no chancejust saying to keep fighting and keepwith the reality of how their condition for a cure, then hope becomesbattling, inside they're feeling, I wishis likely to progress. We know that mismatched to the reality. But hopesomeone would just talk to me aboutmost new residents in long-term grounded in reality is incredible.the truth of this. I want to share mycare are coming in with progressive Someone might hope for a cure atfeelings. I don't want to have to fight.illnesses, meaning they change over the beginning, but then when theyI want to love and hug. And I want totime, they move from one chapter learn that's not possible, they mighttalk about the things I want to leaveto the next and decline is expected. hope for another treatment. And thenbehind for my family. There's life stuffBut residents and their families if that doesn't work, they might hopethat I want to review and reconcile.may not know what to expect, and for another treatment and then hopeAnd, you know, I've got projects Ithere may be unnecessary fear and for as much time as possible, thenwant to do, but everyone aroundmisunderstandings because the hope for comfort, then hope that theirnatural progression of disease hasnt family does well. And finally, hope thatme is telling me that I have to be thisbeen explained to them earlier inthey die comfortably.fighter. But I'm tired and I want to the diagnosis.shift focus. Its the same with grief. Grief alsoA palliative approach to care reduces helps us to prepare for an eventualWe have to acknowledge thefear and stress for both patients/loss. It's called anticipatory grief, andtremendous impact on familyresidents and families. And it makes it allows us to begin to let our mindmembers. They will experience theirhealth care providers feel like there's wander over the losses we're going toloved ones declining, but they tooalways something they can do, even have through an illness journey andare going through a grieving process,if it's just listening. I think that we are how we might cope.change of life, having to alter theirtrying to course correct where we responsibilities and what's on theirhave gone off the rails in our focus in There are things that people can doplate. And if we don't talk about thehealth care, and bring it back to the to exploit their time if they can remainrole of family early on, as things areperson, by giving back the power to hopeful and allow anticipatory grief tobeginning to change, then they findthe individual and the family to take evolve and be realistic about what'sthemselves in situations and in rolesthe lead in their own individualhappening. They'll have more agencythat they weren't prepared for.illness journey. LTCTand feel more control over the time they have left and really be able to tailor the last chapter of their life toDr. Samantha Winemaker is an Associate Clinical Professor at match who they are as a person.McMaster University in the Department of Family Medicine, Division of Palliative Care, the Medical Co-Lead of the Hamilton Community I would be so upset if everyone elsePalliative Care Team, and an active trainer of palliative care education around me in the health care systemto medical students, residents and clinicians. Learn more about knew that I was entering into whather work at www.waitingroomrevolution.com and follow her on X was probably the last year of my(formerly Twitter) at @SammyWinemaker.life, and no one told me and they just continued to cheerlead around 20 LONG TERM CARE TODAY Fall/Winter 2023"