Advance Healthcare Directive: Plan for the Unexpected

Advance Healthcare Directive: Plan for the Unexpected

An advance healthcare directive — sometimes called a "living will" or "personal directive" — is a legal document that records your medical preferences in case you become unable to express them yourself. It ensures that your doctors and loved ones know what you want, even if you can't communicate.

Why This Document Matters

Medical emergencies happen without warning. A car accident, stroke, or sudden illness can leave a person completely unconscious, in a coma, or mentally incapacitated. In these situations, healthcare providers look to family members — or, failing that, state law — to make critical decisions about:

• Whether to use life support
• Resuscitation preferences (CPR, ventilators)
• Artificial nutrition and hydration
• Pain management at end of life
• Organ donation

Without a directive, family members may disagree, courts may be involved, and medical professionals may be legally restricted from honoring what you actually wanted.

Two Core Components

An advance healthcare directive typically combines two documents:

1. Living Will (Healthcare Declaration) A living will specifies your medical treatment preferences if you are terminally ill, in a persistent vegetative state, or otherwise unable to make decisions. Common decisions covered:

• CPR: Do you want resuscitation attempted?
• Ventilator: Do you consent to mechanical breathing assistance?
• Artificial nutrition: Do you want tube feeding or IV nutrition if you cannot eat?
• Dialysis: Do you want kidney dialysis if your kidneys fail?
• Palliative care: Instructions about pain management and comfort-focused care
• Organ donation: Do you wish to donate organs after death?

2. Healthcare Proxy (Medical Power of Attorney) A healthcare proxy designates a specific person (your "healthcare agent") to make medical decisions for you when you are unable to do so. This is the human component of the directive.

Your healthcare agent can: - Speak with your doctors on your behalf - Make decisions not specifically addressed in your living will - Consent to or refuse medical procedures

Choosing Your Healthcare Agent

Choose someone who: - Understands your values around medical care and end of life - Can handle high-stress situations calmly - Will advocate for YOUR wishes, not what they personally prefer - Is geographically accessible in an emergency - Is willing to take on the responsibility

it's wise to name an alternate agent in case your primary choice is unavailable.

What Doctors and Hospitals Do With Your Directive

When you are admitted to a hospital or care facility, they will ask if you have an advance directive. Provide a copy. Your physician will: - Review your wishes - Note the directive in your medical record - Consult it when treatment decisions arise

A directive stored in a drawer at home is not useful in an emergency. Keep copies with: - Your primary care physician - The hospital you'd most likely use - Your healthcare agent - Your attorney or estate planner

POLST vs. Advance Directive

A POLST (Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment) is different from an advance directive. A POLST is a medical order signed by your physician that travels with you through the healthcare system and instructs all providers immediately. An advance directive is a more comprehensive personal document used when physicians need guidance to create specific medical orders.

State-Specific Requirements

Advance directive requirements vary by state: - Some states require witnesses (not related to you or your healthcare agent) - Some require notarization - Some use specific forms that providers are most comfortable recognizing

Create Your Directive Today

don't wait for a health crisis to make these decisions. Creating an advance healthcare directive is an act of clarity and kindness toward the people who love you. iRunDocs helps you create a legally sound healthcare directive — including your living will instructions and healthcare proxy designation.