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 People are living much longer than ever before, but as we grow older, we may find ourselves in the position where decisions need to be made as to how we wish to be treated in certain medical situations at the end of our lives. Further, we may also find ourselves in a condition where we can no longer express our preferences.
Advance health care directives allow us to deal with these situations before they occur. Without such directives, it may be necessary for your family members to obtain court orders to deal with your medical situation.
While state laws vary somewhat, all fifty states permit you to express your wishes as to medical treatment in situations of terminal illness or injury and to appoint someone to speak for you in the event you cannot speak for yourself. Depending on the state, these documents are known as living wills, health care proxies or advance health care directives.
Living Wills
A living will is a written expression of how you wish to be treated in certain medical situations. Depending on state law, this document will generally be used in the event that you are terminally ill or injured, permanently unconscious or without detectable brain activity.
A living will generally applies in situations where the utilization of such treatments may prolong your life for a limited period of time; and where not obtaining such treatments will result in your death.
Health Care Proxies
A health care proxy is the appointment of a person to whom you grant authority to make medical decisions in the event that you are unable to express your preferences. This situation usually occurs because you are unconscious or your mental state is such that you do not have the legal capacity to make your own decisions.
Normally, a single individual is appointed as a health care proxy, though one or more alternate persons may be designated in the event your first choice proxy is unavailable.
Health Directives
Health directives allow you to express your preferences concerning medical treatment when you are otherwise not able to do so yourself. By expressing such preferences in a written legal document, you are ensuring that your wishes will be followed.
Once you have executed an advance health care directive, you should keep it among your important papers. Make sure that a responsible adult knows where you keep these documents. And if you have a regular physician, you should provide a copy for your medical records; likewise if you are admitted to a hospital.
Should you change your mind about your living will decisions or your choice of a health care proxy, you can simply destroy the document and all copies and create a new one. In Pennsylvania, you can orally revoke the document.
Communication is Key
With end of life and incompetency issues, communicating your wishes is essential. An advance health care directive is the first step in this process, but you also need to discuss these issues with the person you appoint as your health care proxy; your physician; and, most importantly, your family. •
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