The Importance of Having a Living Will/Health Care Power of Attorney

INTRODUCTION
Making end of life decisions is a difficult task, and deciding what to do if you become incapacitated can be the most unsettling decision of all. Nobody likes to contemplate the possibility of becoming terminally ill, permanently unconscious, or otherwise incapacitated, and it is for this reason that so many people do not make a Living Will and/or Health Care Power of Attorney. However, this instrument is the best way of ensuring that your wishes regarding your healthcare will be carried out when you are no longer able to make those decisions for yourself.

What is a Living Will/Health Care Power of Attorney?
A Living Will, also known as an Advanced Directive, spells out your wishes regarding certain medical treatments in a written document that is signed, witnessed and notarized. It will dictate what you want to happen in the event that you become permanently unconscious, terminally ill or otherwise incapacitated. When a Living Will is in place, family and medical staff will know whether or not you would like life sustaining treatment, or other measures, that will prolong your life in situations where there is no hope of your recovery.

A Health Care Power of Attorney (HCPOA) is a document that is often incorporated into a Living Will. The HCPOA designates the person (your Personal Representative) whom you want to act in your stead for the purpose of making medical decisions. Your Personal Representative will be able to make almost any health care decision that you would have been able to make were you not incapacitated. This includes the power to consent to, or withhold consent from, any treatments, procedures, or other medical services regarding your physical or mental condition. A HCPOA is needed because a Living Will cannot possibly predict every situation that may arise; the HCPOA nominates a person you trust to fill in the gaps when the Living Will does not provide for a particular situation.
    
Giving someone power over your health care decisions is frightening to most people. Keep in mind however that your agent will only be able to act when a physician certifies that you yourself no longer have the ability to make informed decisions regarding your own care.

Why Do you Need One?
The decision of whether or not to provide medical treatment, particularly life support, is a very personal decision. It is a decision that revolves around our inner-most feelings, and often involves particular religious beliefs. Unfortunately, the time to make these difficult decisions often arises when we are incapable of making them ourselves.

We have all seen what can happen when there is no Living Will in place in the case of Terry Schiavo. Disputes can arise not only about what decision to make, but about who gets to make it. Having a Living Will/HCPOA takes the burden of trying to guess what you would have wanted off of family members and friends. It will provide them, and you, with the peace of mind that they have made the right decisions when it comes to your healthcare. It will also ensure that the person acting on your behalf is the person of your choosing, who is most likely to carry out your final wishes.  

Who Should You Choose as Your Personal Representative?
Your Personal Representative should be someone you trust to make medical decisions on your behalf, such as a family member or close friend. You need to make sure that the person you choose is someone who will make your health care decisions the way that you would want them to be made.

It is often very difficult for a family member to terminate life support of someone they love, or to continue life support for someone they believe may be suffering. It is important to choose someone whose personal beliefs and emotions will not interfere with his or her ability to carry out your wishes. It would also be wise to take into account where your potential representative resides. Someone who lives very far from you may be unavailable to make those decisions, or may cause an inadvertent delay in carrying out your wishes due to travel time.

Other Considerations
Before you execute your Living Will/HCPOA, you should discuss the matter with the person you’ve chosen as your representative. It is important that they understand what you would want to happen in the situations described within your Living Will/HCPOA. It is also important that you make sure that he or she is comfortable with the task of making these difficult decisions, so that you can appoint someone else if need be.

Once you have your Living Will/HCPOA in place, we recommend that you keep a copy close at hand, so that it may be readily accessed if needed. Many people make the mistake of keeping their Living Will in a safe deposit box with their Last Will and Testament. If this is the case, your Living Will may not be accessible to your family at a time when it is needed, and they may not even know that you have one. For this reason, it is a good idea to give a copy of your Living Will to your designated Personal Representative. You may also want to give a copy to your regular doctor to keep in your file. This way, your Living Will can be easily found and carried out at a time when it is needed.

CONCLUSION
Major decisions regarding your medical care should always be made by you. A Living Will/HCPOA will enable you to communicate your wishes to doctors and family in situations where you would otherwise be unable to do so. Your family and friends will be relieved of the burden of wondering if the decisions they have made are what you would have wanted. If you are interested in obtaining this document, please feel free to contact our office at anytime.