Our process

CREATE A HOLISTIC ADVANCED CARE PLAN

A basic advance care plan, like a living will, focuses on medical care and nominating a healthcare proxy (someone who can legally make healthcare decisions on your behalf if you can’t). Advance care planning is about working out end-of-life healthcare plans for you and your family - it’s the best way to prepare for life’s unexpected twists and turns. What type of medical care do you want in the future? Who would you like to speak on your behalf if you can’t? Where do you want to be cared for? But we know many people want more than that, and often a generic template isn’t enough. That’s where Swansong comes in.

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EXPLORE WHAT
MATTERS TO YOU

Over two one-hour online sessions, we’ll guide you through everything from healthcare planning to decisions about burial or cremation, documenting all of it. During your final days, you may want to be surrounded by family – or not; you may want certain of your values respected, which might be religious – or not; perhaps you wish to have music played during your last few days on earth. And you can be specific – you can note down that you like all the famous symphonic works but no Mozart! You can ask a loved one to join you in your session too – having an advance care planning discussion strengthens our relationships with those we love.

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BE SUPPORTED
BY EXPERTS

When events involve a lot of moving pieces, it’s common to bring in a specialist. We have planners for weddings, parties, corporate retreats, and more – people who help us pin down our values, explain complicated rules and contracts, and advise on the logistics so we can focus on the parts that matter most. When it comes to the most difficult event of all – dying and death - many of us feel on our own. Not with Swansong. Our trained counsellors will walk you through the life-affirming conversations and planning, gently, and at your pace.

MEET YOUR TEAM
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You, and the people closest to you, deserve expert guidance to navigate better, more honest conversations about death.

WHAT IT COSTS

Make a booking

Our once-off fee of R2 600 includes the following

  • Pre-meeting information pack.
  • Two one-hour online sessions with a trained counsellor
  • Your completed advance care plan document and recording.
  • Secure online storage.
  • Access for you and your chosen healthcare proxy who can speak on your behalf.

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CONTACT US



YOUR QUESTIONS

FAQS

Take a look at some of the questions we’ve been asked. If you didn’t find what you were looking for, please contact us.

Being prepared for your death is more than simply having a will in place which details how your finances and property will be split up. One of the most valuable gifts you can offer to those you love is to embrace your mortality and be specific about the care you do or do not want to receive, and how you would prefer to die. By planning ahead, you’ll unburden your family from making tough decisions when the time comes someday, ensuring their dignity and yours.

MAKE A BOOKING CONTACT

People often think that it’s too early to be talking about death, but there’s no such thing. We never know what life has in store. Accidents happen. Illness and surgeries increase our risk of needing an advance care plan – COVID-19 has brought that to the fore. We believe that it’s better to have a conversation around the dining table rather than in the ICU. The optimal time to have these conversations, and document how you would prefer to die is now, whatever your age and health status.

A living will typically records your end-of-life healthcare wishes in writing. Doctors will use your living will as a guide when deciding to either prolong life or to focus on comfort instead. Your healthcare proxy is the person you choose to make medical decisions for you, if you lose the ability to speak for yourself or if you cannot make decisions about your own care. Your chosen 'healthcare proxy' will have the legal power (sometimes called "power of attorney for healthcare") to make decisions about your medical treatment (including withholding treatment), in accordance with any limitations or guidance you include in your Advance Care Plan. The Swansong Advance Care Plan (ACP) includes the same content as a living will, but in a more detail, as well as your nomination of a healthcare proxy and other important elements, making it a comprehensive document and guide for your family, your healthcare proxy and for the professionals who will be caring for you at the end of your life.

In everyday so called “common law” practice, an advance care plan is legally sound – it must be signed, dated and witnessed. But it doesn’t need to be done by a lawyer. It’s considered a living document and can be changed at any time.

Your advance care plan & a recording of your actual Swansong session will be stored by Swansong on a secure web-based platform. As you know, your Swansong plan is a living document and you are able to access the document and make any changes or updates at any point.

We only offer our service via video chat. Research has shown this is an effective communication platform for clarifying end-of-life care preferences, with many participants referring a virtual rather than a face to face discussion

Not right now, but this is definitely something we would like to look at for the future.

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