What is an Advanced Medical Directive?
An Advanced Medical Directive is a legal document that states a patient’s wishes about the type of healthcare they wish to receive should they become incapable of making their own medical decisions. It has two components: 1) a Living Will; and 2) a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care.
What is a Living Will?
A Living Will is a legal document in which you provide instructions for your own medical treatment if you become incapacitated, suffer a terminal medical condition, or fall into a state of permanent unconsciousness.
What should I include in my living will?
A living will may discuss your wishes with respect to pain management and identify specific treatments, that you would and would not want doctors to use to keep you alive. Items to consider include:
- CPR
- Mechanical ventilation
- Tube feeding
- Dialysis
- Antibiotics
- Palliative care
- Organ and tissue donations; and donation of your body for scientific research.
What is a Healthcare Power of Attorney
A Healthcare Power of Attorney allows you to appoint an agent to make healthcare decisions when you cannot.
You may name anyone over the age of 18 as an agent except for the physician providing your care. The agent has no legal obligation to serve and is not responsible for paying medical bills. The agent does not need to be an attorney.
In states where Advance Medical Directives are authorized, a Living Will and Healthcare Power of Attorney are combined into a single document. The Living Will states in advance what you know you want or don’t want. The Healthcare Power of Attorney names someone as your agent to make all other health related decisions.