Massachusetts Medical Society: The Importance of Discussing End of Life Care

The Importance of Discussing End of Life Care

The Importance of Discussing End of Life Care

This course has expired and is available for content purposes only.


In a perfect world, every patient would have clear, concise documents that designate a proxy who communicates his or her end-of-life wishes. In the real world, however, this doesn't always happen. Providers need to be aware of the best way to communicate with their patients on this difficult topic and understand the potential legal pitfalls, especially across state borders. This CME activity explores the concept of living wills, health care proxies, power of attorney, DNR/DNI and Medical Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (MOLST) forms.  Providers will learn risk management strategies to avoid legal liability situations when the path is not entirely clear.

Learning Objectives

  • Review some of the landmarks in the development of end-of-life legislation.
  • Explore the concepts of living wills, health care proxies, power of attorney and DNR/DNI.
  • Discuss the attributes of Medical Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment forms (MOLST).

Course Fees
MMS Member Physicians: $12
Nonmember Physicians: $22
Allied Health Professionals: $9.60

Format: Text

CME Credit:  1 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ , risk management study

This activity meets the criteria of the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine for risk management credit, including 1.0 credit in end-of-life care.

The Massachusetts Medical Society designates this enduring material for a maximum of 1 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ . Physicians should claim only credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint providership of the Massachusetts Medical Society and the Lawyers Weekly, Inc.

The Massachusetts Medical Society is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

A score of 70% or higher is required to receive AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ .

System requirements:


Desktops/Laptops
Windows, XP, Vista, 7, 8
Mac OSX 10.6 higher
Most modern browsers including:
IE8,9,10
Firefox 18.0+
Chrome 26+
Safari 5+
Flash player  is required for some Online CME courses.

Mobile/Tablet
iOS devices beginning with OS version 5 or higher (includes, iPhone, ipad and iTouch devices)
Android devices including tablets and phones.
Windows RT and tablets on Windows 8 are also supported.


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