Empowering Patients and Providers with Consistent Instructions for Medical Aid in Dying

Patient Choices Vermont (PCV) has taken an important step in supporting both patients and clinicians by publishing a standardized set of instructions for the use of medical aid in dying in Vermont.

Previously, patients and their caregivers have had to make extra calls to their doctors receive answers to common questions like:

• "What can I eat the day before?"
• "How exactly do I mix the medication?"
• "What do I do if the medication is not used?"

​This lack of clarity has caused unnecessary confusion and anxiety. But now, thanks to the collaborative efforts of PCV's Medical Team - Dr. Diana Barnard, Dr. Zail Berry, Dr. Jaina Clough, and Toni Kaeding, MS RN - clinicians can confidently provide patients with accurate, uniform instructions.

This standardization not only benefits patients, but also facilitates the process for doctors to become prescribers and for hospice organizations to train their staff. It's just one of the ways PCV is working to ensure best practices around medical aid in dying in Vermont.
You can find these vital patient instructions on the PCV website under The Clinician's Guide to Medical Aid in Dying, which has already been viewed over 3,000 times.

We're grateful to the PCV Medical Team for their collaboration and to all of you who support this important work through your donations.

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The PCV Medical team:

Dr. Diana Barnard, PCV Board Member, is a native Vermonter, Board Certified in Hospice and Palliative Care as well as in Family Practice. After more than 17 years in private practice in Addison County, she is a Palliative Care Medicine Physician at University of Vermont Health Network and an Associate Professor at the University of Vermont College of Medicine. Dr. Barnard was recognized in 2019 by the Madison-Deane Education Fund award entitled "Excellence in End of Life Care." She has served on the Ethics and Palliative Care Committees and Board of Directors of Porter Hospital and also on the board of Hospice Volunteer Services of Addison County. Dr. Barnard was honored by the UVM Larner College of Medicine with the 2020 Service to Medicine and Community Award. In 2021, Dr. Barnard was named Vermont Family Physician of the Year. She is the Vermont liaison to the American Clinicians Academy for Medical Aid in Dying. Prior to her present position, was the Medical Director and a board member of Helen Porter Healthcare and Rehabilitation Center. ​

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Dr. Zail Berry, PCV Advisory Board Member, is a retired internist, geriatrician, and palliative care physician who practiced in Vermont for 26 years, including 10 years in private practice as a housecall physician. She was the founding medical director of the Palliative Care Program at the UVM Medical Center and has served as a hospice medical director both in Washington, DC (Hospice of Washington), and in Chittenden County (VNA, now UVM Home Health & Hospice). She received the Madison-Deane Initiative (MDI) Award for Excellence in End-of-Life Care in 2017. Alongside her medical practice she was an Associate Professor of Medicine at the UVM Larner College of Medicine and was active in teaching palliative medicine, pain management, and end-of-life decision-making.

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Dr. Jaina Clough, PCV Board Member, is a hospice and palliative care physician with the University of Vermont (UVM) Health Network. She has been a hospice physician with UVM Home Health and Hospice since 2012 and provides outpatient palliative care at UVM Medical Center. As an assistant professor of medicine at the Larner College of Medicine at UVM, Dr. Clough directs the Hospice and Palliative Medicine Course for third-year medical students. She is on the medical advisory committee for PCV and is the primary author of the Clinician's Guide to Medical Aid in Dying on the PCV website. She is committed to supporting clinicians in their understanding and practice of MAID. She mentors clinicians locally and presents regionally at conferences, lectures, and grand rounds.

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Toni Kaeding, MS RN, Board Co-Chair, is a nurse whose work has spanned clinical, academic, administrative, and policy positions in Vermont. She retired from the University of Vermont where she held both faculty and administrative appointments in the College of Nursing & Health Sciences. She was founding Director of the Freeman Scholars Program.  In 2012, Toni was named recipient of the Founder’s Award by the Vermont Medical Society. She enjoys cross-country skiing and running and lives at the end of the road with her family in Worcester, Vermont. ​

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PCV's medical team works closely with our Program Manager, Audrey Winograd, and with me, Betsy Walkerman, on policies, practices and education related to end-of-life choice.
Please consider making a donation to PCV in recognition of our team of medical experts, to thank them for developing these consistent patient instructions and for all of their work supporting patients and families as well as their medical colleagues.
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​Your contributions have a ripple effect, touching the lives of hundreds of patients and families served by each doctor, nurse, pharmacist, and social worker.

Click to Support Patient Choices Vermont

Or mail a check to:
Patient Choices Vermont
PO Box 671
Shelburne, VT 05482