subject: Advance Medical Directives [print this page] Advance Medical Directives Advance Medical Directives
Frequently when someone draws up a Medical Power of Attorney, they will also include Advanced Medical Directives. This can be an element of the document that you use to appoint your health care agent, or it can be a separate document. Advanced Medical Directives are useful in helping your health care agent decide what medical treatment they should approve for you.
The document can be simple and only include instructions about life support, or it can be very broad. Most people tend to use a Living Will to leave instructions concerning treatment in case of terminal illness or if they should fall into a coma that they are not expected to recover from.
The Living Will is one way that you can be sure that doctors and your family know what type of life supportive treatments you want, and under what circumstances you would think this type of treatment would be acceptable. Much like the Health Care Power of Attorney, a Living Will can only be referred to if your doctor has determined that you cannot make your own medical decisions or communicate what those decisions are.
Even if you have an Advanced Medical Directive, it can always be changed later. You may feel one way about it today and change your mind in the future, but it is easy to change documents like a Living Will.
It is important that you understand that a Living Will is not the same thing as a do not resuscitate order. While a Living Will covers situations where you are on life support and not have the capability of making your own health care decisions concerning life sustaining treatment, a do not resuscitate order is for if you are in repertory or cardiac arrest. This type of order is so that medical personnel know that you do not wish to be resuscitated. You will find the do not resuscitate order is mainly for those people who are not likely to benefit from being resuscitated.
When you are putting together your estate plan, you may want to seriously consider including a Health Care Power of Attorney along with a Living Will. It is better to have these documents before you need them. A Power of Attorney and Living Will can save you and your family a lot of trouble if there is ever a situation where they are needed
