Ensure your Preferred Medical Care

Tuesday, August 4th, 2009

The main problem with estate plans today is that they don’t have any documents for health care.  Another serious problem is that they don’t understand the documents they have, or worse, they have the wrong documents.  Here are some documents you need to make sure that your wishes are followed:

• *Living Will - very simple to execute as most states recognize living wills officially.  The idea behind this is to avoid certain levels or types of care (also known as “heroic measures”) in different circumstances.  A very simple living will would state “I don’t want to prolong my life through any artificial means if I contracted a terminal illness with no hope for recovery.”  Although following this statement may result to a debate (since there is no exact definition of a terminal illness), it’s still necessary to guide your relatives on what to do when you’re brain dead or in a vegetative state.
• *Do not hospitalize/resuscitate order - DNH and DNR orders are common for older people in frail conditions, most especially those in nursing homes.  These people preferred to be in the comfort of their homes rather than pass away in a hospital.
• *Power of attorney/health care proxy - a document that appoints a person or several people to make the medical decisions when they’re unable to do so.

Tags: DNH, DNR, documents, health care, health-care proxy, living will, plans, power of attorney
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President Barack Obama Recommends a Living Will

Tuesday, July 28th, 2009

Recently, President Barack Obama urged all Americans to prepare a living will.  These wills allow people to specifically give instructions if they become incapacitated or ill to make health decisions.  The President mentioned his own family for an example.  He said that he and Michelle Obama (First Lady) have living wills as well as his grandmother who recently died (last November).  In a health care online forum sponsored by AARP, he said “You wouldn’t want somebody else to make those decisions for you.  Therefore, I’d encourage everyone to have their own living will.”

To get one, you can obtain forms from hospitals.  Also, there’s a program of National Hospice Palliative Care Organization called Caring Connections that’s focused on improvement of end-of-life care.  They offer free downloads of living will form or advance directive at its web site for each state.

Common mistakes that people make in their living will is the failure to update it if it’s done years ago, failure to update when they change states, and not getting power of attorney for health care.  When you go to a lawyer, he or she can give you helpful advice, teach you about medical issues arising from it, or warn you about what will happen when you don’t have one.   

Tags: AARP, attorney, Barack Obama, Caring Connections, health care, living will, medical issues, Michelle Obama, mistakes, National Hospice Palliative Care Organization, power of attorney, President, Wills
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Living Wills: Important in All Life Stages

Tuesday, July 14th, 2009

Mitch Albom, the author of the book Tuesdays with Morrie, brought the character of Morrie Schwartz into life.  In the book, Schwartz said “People are acting as if death is so contagious.  But in reality, it’s not contagious.  Death is so natural, as natural as life itself.”  Nevertheless, people still avoid the topics of dying and death, even if this popular biography has successfully made death seem accessible.

It’s a unique human experience to be aware of one’s own mortality.  Although for some people it’s not easy to discuss, most would not want to burden their loved ones of any significant health change or a catastrophic event.  Despite this, however, more than two-thirds of adults don’t have any living will or advance directives.

Young people are mostly the ones who have not expressed future preferences while older adults are more aware on giving instructions about health care and appointing someone to make the medical treatment decisions when they’re stricken with a serious accident or disease.

Remember that whether you’re young, middle-aged, or older, any responsible adult benefits from creating a living will.  When you’ve put your preferences and wishes on paper with the help of an attorney, it’s essential to have a meaningful conversation and discuss it with your family.

Tags: accident, attorney, death, disease, health care, living will, Mitch Albom, Morrie Schwartz, mortality, Tuesdays with Morrie, will
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