What You Can Cover in Your Health Care Directives
Palliative Care (Pain Relief)
If you want death to occur naturally -- without life-prolonging intervention -- it does not mean you must forgo treatment to alleviate pain or keep you comfortable. This type of care, sometimes known as "comfort care" is now more commonly called "palliative care."
Rather than focusing on a cure or prolonging life, palliative care emphasizes quality of life and dignity by helping a patient remain comfortable and free from pain until life ends naturally. Palliative care may be administered at home, in a hospice facility, or at a hospital.
You may wish to spend some time educating yourself about palliative care. You can include your feelings and preferences about such care in your living will.
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DNR Orders | Some people who do not wish to receive life-prolonging treatment when close to death -- most likely those who are already critically ill -- may also want to prepare a "do not resuscitate" order, or DNR order. If a medical emergency occurs, this form alerts emergency personnel that you do not wish to receive cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). If you are in the hospital, your doctor can add a DNR order to your medical record. If you are not hospitalized, you can make what's called a "prehospital DNR order," to alert paramedics who come to your home or care facility. In addition to preparing a prehospital DNR order, you should also obtain an easily identifiable Medic Alert bracelet, anklet, or necklace. If you think you might want to make a DNR order, talk to your doctor or a hospital representative. |
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Your Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care
You can use a durable power of attorney for health care to name someone (your health care agent) to oversee your health care wishes and make any necessary medical decisions for you. You can give your health care agent as much or as little power as feels comfortable to you. Most people give their health care agent comprehensive power to supervise their care.
Recognizing this, the power of attorney forms for most states give your agent the authority to make all health care decisions for you unless you specifically place limits on that authority in the document. This means that your agent will normally be permitted to:
- consent or refuse consent to any medical treatment that affects your physical or mental health (there are usually exceptions to this rule for situations such as extreme psychiatric treatments and termination of pregnancy, and your agent is not permitted to authorize any act that violates the wishes you've stated in your living will)
- hire or fire medical personnel
- make decisions about the best medical facilities for you
- visit you in the hospital or other facility even when other visiting is restricted
- gain access to medical records and other personal information, and
- get court authorization, if required to obtain or withhold medical treatment, if for any reason a hospital or doctor does not honor your living will or the authority of your health care agent.
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