Starting the Conversation: A Planner for Talking About Hospice and End-of-Life Care

There is rarely a good time to start a conversation about hospice, and no version of it feels easy. Most people delay it not because they don't understand what's happening, but because they don't know how to begin.

This planner doesn't tell you what to say. It gives you a structure for organizing your own thoughts beforehand, keeping family members aligned, tracking questions for the care team, and recording a patient's wishes in plain language as a companion to formal directives, not a replacement for them. A care team contact sheet keeps everyone reachable in one place.

There is no version of this conversation that goes perfectly. Having somewhere to organize your thoughts first, and a record of what was actually said afterward, is enough.

This is an instant PDF download you can read on any device or print at home for easy reference, easy to print and keep nearby, since this isn't a conversation you want to be scrolling through on a device to prepare for.

Part of the Hard Things Made Simple: Caregiving & Eldercare series.