Compassionate Care Alliance (CCA) began as a grass roots coalition group in 2000 dedicated to improving end of life care in Monterey County.

The coalition established a twofold mission:

• To provide access to comprehensive information and resources on end of life care
• To raise public awareness and create opportunities for dialogue about end of life issues, care choices and planning.

Death is the one issue that we must all face at some point in our lives, whether it is our own or the loss of family and friends. Before the inception of Compassionate Care Alliance, Monterey County did not have a centralized source of information to help families deal with the complex issues related to end of life care choices and planning.

Caring Resources Program

Our Caring Resources Program ensures that accurate, relevant and timely information is available to all community residents, regardless of ethnicity, age or socioeconomics, thus easing the burdens of patients, families and caregivers. It also provides opportunities for dialogue through Healing through the Arts projects, community forums and workshops and a public access television series Healthy Aging: Finding the Answers for Tomorrow.

Access to Information

The first step in achieving our mission was to create a website, CaringResources.org. The innovative site places critical information at community members' fingertips with information on:

Also included are downloadable Advance Directives and an informational guide from the American Bar Association to use while completing these important documents.