Understanding Health Care Proxies and Living Wills

Understanding Health Care Proxies and Living Wills PDF Author: Boston Bar Association
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Informed consent (Medical law)
Languages : en
Pages : 141

Get Book Here

Book Description


Understanding Your Living Will

Understanding Your Living Will PDF Author: Fred Mirarchi
Publisher: Addicus Books
ISBN: 1938803140
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 123

Get Book Here

Book Description
Is Your Living Will Compromising Your Safety? If you have a living will, you probably had it prepared so your wishes could be carried out if you became incapable of making your own medical decisions. But, did you realize there is a risk of your living will being misinterpreted? Patients who are not terminally ill die in hospitals every year because of medical staff misinterpretations of living wills. These are patients who would have otherwise lived if treated. But, too often, patients with living wills are treated as DNR—a code status understood by physicians and staff to mean &“do not resuscitate.&” However, in many cases their status should have been &“Full Code,&” which tells those in authority to use aggressive efforts to save patients' lives. Unfortunately, living wills do not contain patient code status designations and therein lies the problem. As an emergency room physician, Ferdinando L. Mirarchi, D.O. understands how these misinterpretations happen. In Understanding Your Living Will, Dr. Mirarchi explains how to include lifesaving patient code status information in your living will and in the living wills of your loved ones. Among the questions he answers: &· How can you be sure your living will makes your wishes clear? &· What are the hidden dangers in living wills? &· How can you avoid the misinterpretation of a DNR code status? &· When does a living will become active? &· Why is it important to have a health care power of attorney? &· What is a health care proxy? A Book to Help You Ensure Your Living Will Follows Your Wishes

Wants, Wishes, and Wills

Wants, Wishes, and Wills PDF Author: Wynne A. Whitman
Publisher: Financial Times/Prentice Hall
ISBN:
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 344

Get Book Here

Book Description
Take Control of Your Medical Care, Your Estate Planning, and the Legacy You Leave Includes checklists, examples, definitions, ideas, and a plain- English glossary of the terms you need to understand "Whether you are single, married, old, young, parent, or child, this book will be useful. The authors' combination of medical and legal expertise make this an exceptionally comprehensive guide for thinking through important health, end-of-life, and estate planning issues that we all face. It certainly helped me open a dialogue with my family and spurred me to take control of my own wants, wishes, and wills." -Cynthia J. Smith, Lecturer, Ohio State University, Fisher College of Business and Department of Anthropology "Over many years of helping patients and families deal with the end of their lives, I am always struck by how hard it is to face that inevitable event. Thinking straight when you can makes sense.Wants, Wishes, and Wills can help you do it now. Tomorrow is already here." -Deborah Y. Kamin, PhD, Senior Director of Cancer Policy and Clinical Affairs, American Society of Clinical Oncology ""Wants, Wishes, and Wills" is a 'must read' for anyone needing to access the U.S. health care system." -Vickie Yates Brown, President-Elect (2007-2008), American Bar Association Health Law Section "As you read the sound advice from Wynne Whitman and Dr. Shawn Glisson, think about your own life circumstances. Think about your family, friends-and yourself. Remember that thinking about its end may be the most eloquent way to celebrate your life." -from the foreword by Dr. Joseph S. Bailes, M.D., Medical Oncologist, Co-Chair, Government Relations Council, American Society of Clinical Oncology A terminal diagnosis...a life-threatening disease... recognition of one's own mortality...or simply planning ahead. These all lead individuals to contemplate difficult end-of-life decisions. But when they do, they find themselves confused, desperately seeking guidance: about Living Wills, about health care proxies, about their own care, wishes, and affairs. Dr. Shawn D. Glisson and Wynne A.Whitman, Esq., help people face these issues every day- Glisson as a respected oncologist, Whitman as an experienced estate lawyer. Now, they've come together to give readers all the tools they need to make the best decisions for themselves and their families. The authors provide compassionate, up-to-date, plain-English guidance you need to decide for yourself and stay in control of your life. Understand your choices and take control of them Know your options and make sure your decisions are respected Know the law-before it's too late Understand directives, health care proxies, Living Wills, and powers of attorney The authors answer questions such as: How can I make sure I get the best possible care to fight my disease? How do I prepare a Living Will that accurately expresses my views? Will alternative therapies help me? What should I know about hospice? What's the best way to plan my estate and minimize my taxes? Above all, how do I make sure my wishes are followed? Foreword Introduction Section I The Wants, Wishes, and Wills of Your Health and Medical Situation Chapter 1 Health and Medical Wants: Your Personal Health Care System 3 Chapter 2 Health and Medical Wishes: Providers, Facilities, and Programs 11 Chapter 3 Health and Medical Wills: Your Medical Conditions 33 Section II The Wants, Wishes, and Wills of Your Personal Situation Chapter 4 Personal Wants: Doctors and Dialogue 43 Chapter 5 Personal Wishes: Screening and Counseling 51 Chapter 6 Personal Wills: Drugs, Diets, and Devices 63 Section III The Wants, Wishes, and Wills of Your Medical-Legal Affairs Chapter 7 Medical-Legal Wants: Understanding Interventions 83 Chapter 8 Medical-Legal Wishes: Defining Capacity, Consciousness, and Contingencies 95 Chapter 9 Medical-Legal Wills: Directives, Definitions, and Discussions 111 Section IV The Wants, Wishes, and Wills of Your Selfless Contributions Chapter 10 Selfless Contribution Wants: Donating Time, Tissue, and Treatment Data 137 Chapter 11 Selfless Contribution Wishes: Individual Purpose, Production, and Protection 145 Chapter 12 Selfless Contribution Wills: Donation Requirements, Responsibilities, and Rights 153 Section V The Wants, Wishes, and Wills of Your Estate Planning Chapter 13 Estate Planning Wants: Purpose, Preparation, and Protection 161 Chapter 14 Estate Planning Wishes: Caring for Family, Friends, and Foundations 181 Chapter 15 Estate Planning Wills: Testaments, Trusts, and Other Tools 193 Section VI The Wants, Wishes, and Wills of Your Legacy Chapter 16 Legacy Wants: Providing Ideas, Intentions, and Instructions 219 Chapter 17 Legacy Wishes: Assisting Family, Friends, and Future Generations to Remember 233 Chapter 18 Legacy Wills: Your Safety, Your Rights, and Your Records 241 Conclusion 255 Additional Resources 261 Glossary 265 Index 279

Planning for Uncertainty

Planning for Uncertainty PDF Author: David John Doukas
Publisher: JHU Press
ISBN: 0801886082
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 166

Get Book Here

Book Description
It won't happen to me. I'm too busy to worry about a living will. My family will know what to do. No one wants to plan for death or incapacitating illness. But, as the emotional legal battle in the Terri Schiavo case made all too clear, people of all ages need to document and communicate clear decisions about the final details of their lives while they are healthy and have time to fully consider their own values and preferences. Here, Drs. David Doukas and William Reichel help individuals make decisions and communicate their wishes to health care providers and family members and other loved ones. Drs. Doukas and Reichel use a question-and-answer format to guide readers through the process—emphasizing the crucial connection between values and treatment preferences. They explain advance directives and the health care decision-making process, including the values history, family covenants, proxies, and proxy negation. The appendix includes resources and Web links for learning about advance directive requirements and obtaining legal forms in all fifty states. This practical guide helps people navigate the important but often intimidating process of thinking about, and planning for, an uncertain future.

Last Things First, Just in Case...

Last Things First, Just in Case... PDF Author: Jo Kline Cebuhar
Publisher: Murphy Publishing, LLC
ISBN: 0966185129
Category : Advance directives (Medical care)
Languages : en
Pages : 242

Get Book Here

Book Description
Few Americans have prepared advance directives for end-of-life care because they don't realize how inexpensive and simple it is to document their wishes and preserve family harmony. Last things first tells the medical and legal story of advance directives, why it is important to document wishes for end-of-life care and how easy it is to create this simple--yet vital--record of your values and wishes for care.

Dying in America

Dying in America PDF Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309303133
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 470

Get Book Here

Book Description
For patients and their loved ones, no care decisions are more profound than those made near the end of life. Unfortunately, the experience of dying in the United States is often characterized by fragmented care, inadequate treatment of distressing symptoms, frequent transitions among care settings, and enormous care responsibilities for families. According to this report, the current health care system of rendering more intensive services than are necessary and desired by patients, and the lack of coordination among programs increases risks to patients and creates avoidable burdens on them and their families. Dying in America is a study of the current state of health care for persons of all ages who are nearing the end of life. Death is not a strictly medical event. Ideally, health care for those nearing the end of life harmonizes with social, psychological, and spiritual support. All people with advanced illnesses who may be approaching the end of life are entitled to access to high-quality, compassionate, evidence-based care, consistent with their wishes. Dying in America evaluates strategies to integrate care into a person- and family-centered, team-based framework, and makes recommendations to create a system that coordinates care and supports and respects the choices of patients and their families. The findings and recommendations of this report will address the needs of patients and their families and assist policy makers, clinicians and their educational and credentialing bodies, leaders of health care delivery and financing organizations, researchers, public and private funders, religious and community leaders, advocates of better care, journalists, and the public to provide the best care possible for people nearing the end of life.

A Guide to Living Wills and Health Care Proxies

A Guide to Living Wills and Health Care Proxies PDF Author: Christine Junge
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781933225715
Category : Electronic books
Languages : en
Pages : 33

Get Book Here

Book Description


Making Sense of Advance Directives

Making Sense of Advance Directives PDF Author: N.M. King
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 9401133808
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 242

Get Book Here

Book Description
The first time I read the medical consent and authorization. it had registered in my mind simply as a legal document. Now I began to understand what it meant. It was a letter of ultimate love and trust. (Schucking. 1985. p. 268) Ever since Karen Ann Quinlan slipped into permanent unconsciousness in 1975 and her father agonized publicly over whether she should remain indefinitely on a respirator (In re Quinlan, 1976), the desires of patients, their families, and their friends to limit the application of apparently limitless medical technology have been a pressing concern for ethics, law, and public policy. Ms. Quinlan's case contained nearly all the elements of the problems we still face: vague, general, but sincere prior oral statements suggesting that she would not want continued treatment; a family attempting to do what they saw as best for her; and physicians uncertain whether to use medical judgment alone (and if so, what the "right" medical decision was), to preserve her life at all costs, or to honor the family's interpretation of their daughter's choice. Most ironically, once she was removed from her respirator, she did not die. Karen Quinlan - like dozens of other names made famous by court decisions, newspaper stories, and television evening news - has come to symbolize a tangled knot of issues surrounding the end of life and who controls it.

The Complete Legal Form Book of Living Wills: Advance Directives to Physicians; Medical Powers of Attorney; Pain Management Plan; And, Final Instructions and Directives

The Complete Legal Form Book of Living Wills: Advance Directives to Physicians; Medical Powers of Attorney; Pain Management Plan; And, Final Instructions and Directives PDF Author: Ernest M. Edsel
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 0557063205
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 99

Get Book Here

Book Description
Attorney-written legal forms, with easy-to-understand instructions, to protect yourself and loved ones in case of serious or terminal illness.Includes two sets of Living Wills, each with an advance directive to physician and medical power of attorney.The first Living Will is suitable for most persons. The second Living Will is suitable if you have family members who might object to your medical decisions and end-of-life choices.The book includes:1. a detailed Pain Management Plan, which is suitable for persons whose doctors may not provide necessary drugs to end pain, anguish, and/or agitation during a serious or terminal illness; and,2. Final Instructions and Directives, with practical and comprehensive instructions and directives to leave for your loved ones in case of your serious illness or death.

The Law of Later-life Health Care and Decision Making

The Law of Later-life Health Care and Decision Making PDF Author: Lawrence A. Frolik
Publisher: American Bar Association
ISBN: 9781590317594
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 324

Get Book Here

Book Description
Directives - which include living wills and health care powers of attorney (or proxies) are unique in a heretofore unknown way. They draw heavily on the knowledge and skills of practitioners from all three of the noble professions: law, medicine, and spirit. That's precisely why Advance Health Care Directives: A Handbook for Professionals is such an exceedingly important work. Authored by a lawyer and a physician, this far ranging volume deals with the difficult and sensitive issues faced by professionals - lawyers, doctors, nurses, clerics, spiritual advisors, chaplains, social workers, palliative caregivers, and all allied walks - in helping clients and patients plan, write, execute, and implement these utterly essential "personal contingency plans" for health care decision-making. Book jacket.