A nightmare that doctors overwhelmingly choose to avoid when they die themselves

[Bibliovore]

107. A good reminder to make sure all such forms and information are readily at hand

I'm really sorry for your loss and what you had to go through. That must have been (and still be) horrible.

It was bad enough when my grandparents died, but it was made a bit easier by a binder they kept that they called their "black book." All immediate family members knew exactly what and where it was. It contained all relevant information in case of serious illness or injury -- names and contact details for their insurance, regular doctors, lawyer, and so on, as well as their living wills and advance directives, my grandfather's military information, their prepaid funeral-home plan, and a reminder note on where to find their files for all active financial accounts (from checking to IRA to credit cards to cable).

I can't imagine how much more stressful their deaths would have been for the rest of the family without that binder. I expect to live for many more decades, but I already have a similar file set up. I need to check with my father and make sure he has one in place.