Washington State POLST Program
The Washington State POLST Program is run by a volunteer Steering Committee comprised of retired and active clinicians who are dedicated to advancing POLST adoption and awareness.
Our Vision
All persons in Washington State are supported to express treatment preferences when facing life-limiting situations like serious illness or advancing age, and to trust that these preferences will be honored by health care teams, especially in the event of a medical emergency.
Our Mission
Ensure that the Washington State POLST form and all supporting education statewide reflect best practices, high‑quality training, and consistent standards so that every person’s treatment preferences are clearly known, documented, and honored.
Washington POLST Steering Committee
Hope Wechkin, MD FAAHPM HMDC
Hope Wechkin, MD FAAHPM HMDC
Hope Wechkin, MD FAAHPM HMDC
Hope Wechkin is the Executive Medical Director of Post-Acute Care at Evergreen Health (Hospice, Palliative Medicine, Home Health, and Behavioral Medicine). She is a board-certified physician in Hospice and Palliative Medicine, clinical faculty member of University of Washington School of Medicine, and affiliate investigator at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center.
Hilary Walker, OTL, CAPS
Hope Wechkin, MD FAAHPM HMDC
Hope Wechkin, MD FAAHPM HMDC
Hilary Walker has supported individuals facing unexpected events and serious illness as an Occupational Therapist in Acute Care, ICU, Skilled Nursing, and Home Health for over 25 years. Along the way, she developed a deep passion for Advance Care Planning (ACP) and patient advocacy around end-of-life options – where people feel empowered
Hilary Walker has supported individuals facing unexpected events and serious illness as an Occupational Therapist in Acute Care, ICU, Skilled Nursing, and Home Health for over 25 years. Along the way, she developed a deep passion for Advance Care Planning (ACP) and patient advocacy around end-of-life options – where people feel empowered and heard. From 2017-2025 she served as the first ACP Program Coordinator at PeaceHealth, where she built a system-wide interdisciplinary advance care planning education and awareness program. Currently, she is the Program Coordinator for the WA POLST Program and continues to consult for ACP organizations across Washington. She is the co-founder of Stay Home Improvements, a business dedicated to home modifications, resources and community collaboration that supports people wishing to age-in- place and die with grace.
Bill Lorber, MD, MS, FACMI
Hope Wechkin, MD FAAHPM HMDC
Bill Lorber, MD, MS, FACMI
Bill Lorber is a Professor of Health Informatics and Global Health, University of Washington. He trained as an Emergency Physician and computer engineer. Bill leads the UW Clinical Informatics Research Group, developing systems for patient-centered care and patient-controlled sharing. Interested in POLST as sharable information that ho
Bill Lorber is a Professor of Health Informatics and Global Health, University of Washington. He trained as an Emergency Physician and computer engineer. Bill leads the UW Clinical Informatics Research Group, developing systems for patient-centered care and patient-controlled sharing. Interested in POLST as sharable information that honors treatment preferences within families, between health care organizations, and across state and national borders.
Susan Hickman, PhD
Gregg Vanderkieft, MD
Bill Lorber, MD, MS, FACMI
Susan Hickman, PhD, is a geropsychologist as well as Senior Scientist and Director of the Investigative Science Division at Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute. Dr. Hickman has been studying and doing outreach on advance care planning and POLST since 1998 when she joined the Oregon Health & Science University Program
Susan Hickman, PhD, is a geropsychologist as well as Senior Scientist and Director of the Investigative Science Division at Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute. Dr. Hickman has been studying and doing outreach on advance care planning and POLST since 1998 when she joined the Oregon Health & Science University Program on End-of-Life Research at the Center for Ethics in Health Care and School of Nursing. She is a co-founder of the National POLST Task Force (now the National POLST Collaborative) and has been engaged in the National POLST Research and Quality Assurance Committee as a co-chair, Chair, and member for over a decade. After relocating to Indiana in 2008 and joining the Indiana University School of Nursing, she co-founded and lead the Indiana Patient Preferences Coalition community stakeholder group. In this role, she has championed the nearly unanimous passage of four end-of-life decision-making statutes in the Indiana General Assembly over a decade including the Indiana POST (Physician Orders for Scope of Treatment) and a complete overhaul of Indiana’s advance care consent statutes. She also created a range of educational materials and videos to support education on the Indiana POST.
Dr. Hickman is currently the Co-Principal Investigator on two National Institutes of Health (NIH) studies to map advance care planning implementation and outcomes in different settings of care as well as patient and caregiver care planning work. Additionally, she is a Co-Investigator on the NIH-funded Nursing Home Explanatory Clinical Trials – Supporting Transformation by Enhancing Partnerships “NEXT STEPs” Network. Prior research includes a recently completed NIH funded pragmatic randomized clinical trial to evaluate an advance care planning program for the caregivers of nursing home residents with Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementias. Dr. Hickman was also a co-investigator on two NIA-funded trials that include advance care planning interventions that incorporated POLST: Portable Medical Orders, implemented POLST as part of a successful CMS demonstration project to reduce potentially avoidable hospitalizations of long-stay nursing home residents, trained over 300 health care professionals in POLST facilitation as a Respecting Choices faculty. and has published two literature reviews of POLST research.
Gregg Vanderkieft, MD
Gregg Vanderkieft, MD
Gregg Vanderkieft, MD
Gregg Vanderkieft is a Palliative Care Physician and Clinical Ethicist in Olympia with Providence South Puget Sound. Medical Director for the Washington Rural Palliative Care Initiative. Former Executive Medical Director for Palliative Care for the Providence Health System.
Abby Dotson, PhD
Gregg Vanderkieft, MD
Gregg Vanderkieft, MD
Abby Dotson is the Director of the Oregon POLST Registry (OPR) and an Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at Oregon Health and Science University. In her role at OPR, Abby oversees the operations and ongoing technology development of the secure, statewide digital health platform that allows healthcare professionals treating patients
Abby Dotson is the Director of the Oregon POLST Registry (OPR) and an Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at Oregon Health and Science University. In her role at OPR, Abby oversees the operations and ongoing technology development of the secure, statewide digital health platform that allows healthcare professionals treating patients access to their end-of-life medical orders. She serves on the Oregon POLST Coalition and the National POLST Collaborative’s (NPC) Research and Quality Assurance Committee (RQAC). Dr. Dotson was the Chair of the National POLST Collaborative Technology Committee until she served at the NPC Executive Direction from 2023 to 2025. She continues to advise multiple states on their POLST technology and policy development efforts. As an Associate Professor, Abby conducts and supports end-of-life treatment research centered around POLST use and outcomes, and is passionate about using data to drive POLST policy and education.
Sharmon Figenshaw, RN, MN, ARNP
Sharmon Figenshaw, RN, MN, ARNP
Sharmon Figenshaw, RN, MN, ARNP
Sharmon Figenshaw is a Licensed Nurse Practitioner with a focus on hospice and palliative care. She has chaired the Washington State POLST Task Force and served as a member of Washington Serious Illness Coalition. Shar provides education and training on the topics of palliative care, use of POLST and improving health care communication about serious illness.
Bruce Smith, MD
Sharmon Figenshaw, RN, MN, ARNP
Sharmon Figenshaw, RN, MN, ARNP
Bruce is a retired MD who specialized in Internal Medicine, Geriatrics, and Hospice & Palliative Medicine. He is the former chair of POLST Taskforce and Serious Illness Care Coalition and representative to National POLST program.
Wendy Norman, ACP Consultant
Sharmon Figenshaw, RN, MN, ARNP
Anna Scott, MSN MHA RN CHPN CPHQ
Wendy Norman is the Founder of Known Wishes, an organization providing end-of-life education and awareness through individual consulting, seminars and workshops. She is an End-of-Life and Advance Care Planning Planning Consultant and a public speaker on topics related to end-of-life choice and patient advocacy.
Anna Scott, MSN MHA RN CHPN CPHQ
Anna Scott, MSN MHA RN CHPN CPHQ
Anna Scott, MSN MHA RN CHPN CPHQ
Anna Scott is a Licensed Registered Nurse with more than 20 years of experience focused on palliative care, advance care planning, and improving the quality of serious illness conversations. She provides education and support for advance care planning, POLST implementation, and shared decision-making to help ensure care aligns with ea
Anna Scott is a Licensed Registered Nurse with more than 20 years of experience focused on palliative care, advance care planning, and improving the quality of serious illness conversations. She provides education and support for advance care planning, POLST implementation, and shared decision-making to help ensure care aligns with each person's values, goals, and treatment preferences. Currently she is a Quality and Safety Improvement Manager at Kaiser Permanente Northwest supporting Life Care Planning and Clinical Ethics.