Who We Serve
People seek IPIC’s support at moments when medical decisions feel complex, uncertain, or difficult to navigate alone. These moments often arise during times of illness, change, or transition — when information is incomplete, emotions are heightened, and the stakes feel deeply personal.
Support is tailored to each situation, with the understanding that different people face different kinds of challenges depending on their role, circumstances, and responsibilities.
Individuals and Families Navigating Illness
Serious illness can change the rhythm of life quickly. Decisions may arise before there has been time to fully absorb what is happening, adjust expectations, or regain a sense of footing--let alone consider what feels right.
IPIC helps individuals and families:
Understand specific treatment options and likely outcomes
Clarifying what different paths may involve, both medically and in daily life.
Place options in the context of personal values and priorities
Considering how choices align with what matters most to the person living with the consequences.
Approach decisions in a way that feels more grounded
Creating anchoring guideposts and helping choices feel more deliberate and manageable.
Surrogate Decision-Makers
At times, people are asked to make medical decisions on behalf of someone they care about. This may happen suddenly, during serious illness or hospitalization, or gradually, as cognitive or functional changes unfold.
As a surrogate, you may be trying to represent what you know about your loved one’s values and priorities in circumstances shaped by illness and medical constraints — not by choice or personal control.
IPIC helps surrogates:
Clarify their role and responsibilities
Understanding what it means to speak for another person in complex medical situations.Translate known values into guidance for unfamiliar decisions
Applying what is already known to new and often unexpected choices.Approach decisions with greater clarity and confidence
Supporting surrogates in making thoughtful decisions they can live with over time.
People Seeking Advance Care Planning
Some people seek IPIC’s support before a crisis occurs. Advance care planning offers an opportunity to reflect ahead of time on preferences for care and how important decisions should be approached if circumstances change.
IPIC works with people who want to:
Reflect on values and priorities
Thinking intentionally about what feels most important to preserve or avoid.Explore preferences in the context of possible future scenarios
Considering how values might guide decisions under different conditions.Approach planning as an ongoing process
Recognizing that preferences may evolve over time rather than being fixed once and for all.
Professionals Supporting Patients and Families
IPIC also works with clinicians, care managers, attorneys, and organizational leaders who support individuals facing complex medical decisions.
This work focuses on strengthening communication, decision support, and program design so that care more fully reflects patients’ values, priorities, and lived experience.
You don’t need to have everything figured out to begin.
A first conversation can help clarify whether and how IPIC might be useful for your situation.