Woodland Healthcare one of 7 pilot programs
August 16, 2008 - WOODLAND, CA - Legislation that puts patients in charge of end-of-life care decisions was recently signed into law by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, but a pilot program at Woodland Healthcare has already educated some patients about the Physicians Order for Life Sustaining Treatment.
Assemblywoman Lois Wolk sponsored Assembly Bill 3000, or the Wolk bill, that enables patients with a serious illness and life expectancy of a year or less to utilize a POLST form to express their wishes regarding life-sustaining treatments such as resuscitation, nutrition and pain management.
The bill requires that the POLST form, a form that clearly documents a patient's treatment preferences, be treated as a doctor's order. The form must be signed by a doctor in order to be implemented.
Woodland Healthcare Internal Medicine Physician Dr. Jeff Yee, testified in support of the bill before the state Assembly Subcommittees for Health and Judiciary.
Yee helped implement a POLST pilot program at Woodland Healthcare, one of seven POLST pilot programs in the state.
"POLST is a great way to encourage discussion between physicians and patients about serious medical situations that could come up in the immediate future," said Yee. "This type of discussion is not always easy but important for patients and their families to talk about with their physician so informed decisions can be made."
Under the measure, a health care provider fills out the POLST form with the patient as part of a conversation about their illness.
The law also requires that health care providers and emergency responders throughout the state honor these forms across all health care settings, including emergency rooms. The form, printed on bright pink paper, is easy for emergency care providers to identify and use. The law does not require a physician to use the POLST form. It does provide patients with the option of using the POLST process, which has been adopted in 15 other states.
The POLST pilot programs at seven California hospitals, including Woodland Healthcare, were funded by a grant from the California Healthcare Foundation. Woodland Healthcare has applied for a second grant to continue the program at the hospital until the law takes effect.
"As we gain technical and administrative expertise in the implementation of POLST, I hope that we can turn our attention towards creating opportunities that facilitate physician/patient communication regarding medical care in advanced disease stages," said Yee.
The legislation was signed last week and earned appaluse from Wolk, D-Davis.
"I applaud the Governor for signing this legislation, which puts patients in charge of their end-of-life care decisions," said Wolk. "My legislation ensures that, unlike advance health care directives and do not resuscitate orders, POLST forms will carry the weight of a doctor's order meaning that it must be followed across all health care settings, including long-term care facilities, and emergency rooms, by all health care providers including physicians, nurses and emergency medical personnel. That's the primary reason the POLST process is the best way for patients to ensure their wishes are honored."
"I know from personal experience how critical it is for a patient's treatment preferences to be clearly conveyed and easily accessible to health care providers. A person's decisions relating to their end-of-life care are among the most important they'll ever make. This new law will ensure that those decisions are honored by all health care providers," said Wolk.
"I look forward to continuing to work with the healthcare community to see the POLST process utilized to benefit patients throughout California."
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Article published in the Daily Democrat on 8/16/2008
