“Barriers To Decision-Making In End of Life Care: An Introduction to New Jersey Goals of Care” will be the topic of a presentation by David Barile, MD; CEO and medical director of New Jersey Goals of Care, at the meeting of the 55-Plus Club t 10 a.m., Thursday, October 20, at The Jewish Center of Princeton, 435 Nassau Street. Everyone is welcome. Admission is free, with a $3 donation suggested. 

Dr. Barile will discuss the top ten barriers to good end-of-life care and the current status of aging and dying in New Jersey. He will also describe interventions and recent projects that New Jersey Goals of Care is conducting. As patients age and enter their final years of life, their goals may change from cure and longevity to more comfort and better quality of life in the time remaining. Other specific goals may be for the patient to drive, garden, or live long enough to attend a family event such as a wedding or graduation.

By aligning therapies to achieve a specific patient goal, quality of care and satisfaction with care improve. The present model for health care in New Jersey is for physicians to pursue aggressive and curative therapies until the patient has approached an actively dying phase. Goals of care are not usually discussed with the patient or family until this time. This sudden switch in goals often leaves the patient and family members disappointed in their medical care and sometimes feeling abandoned by their primary physician. Through government, academic, and community education, Dr. David Barile hopes to improve medical decision making in ways that better serve patients.

Dr. David Barile graduated from Eastern Virginia Medical School, completed his internship and residency at Beth Israel Medical Center in New York City, and his geriatric fellowship at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. He is board certified in internal medicine, geriatrics, and hospice/palliative medicine and has been in clinical practice since 2000.

55-Plus was organized in 1986 as a non-sectarian group to promote social contacts and friendships among men and women who are either retired or who have flexible working hours. Members meet at 10 a.m., usually on the first and third Thursday mornings of each month (except late June, July and August) to listen to and discuss a wide range of topics presented by prominent speakers. 55-Plus meetings are open to the general public.