Tool Makes Advance Care Planning Easier

End-of-life care isn’t easy to talk about — not for patients or the health professionals who provide patient care.

“It’s a difficult conversation, but it’s incredibly important, especially with COVID-19,” says Ann Hollander, founder of Options for Aging, a geriatrics care management practice based in Wilmette.

Social workers, case managers, elder law attorneys, financial advisers and doctors frequently expect plans to be made and accessible before providing treatment.

Digital healthcare platform Vynca — a start-up member of the Chicago-based MATTER innovation hub — enables patients and clinicians to complete legally valid advance care planning documents that clinicians can immediately access.

The advance care planning tool provides education and content to guide clinicians through end-of-life conversations and provides patients with information to help them make better decisions about future care preferences.