According to Miami Probate Attorney, an estate planning attorney in Miami, Florida, living wills and other advance directives, such as a power of attorney for health care, help individuals by describing their preferences regarding their own end-of-life care, and adults of all ages should have advance directives because the unexpected may happen at any age.
He describes living wills as a legal document that describes an individual's preferences regarding their own treatment if they face a serious illness or accident, speaking for them when they cannot speak for themselves.
A living will, also known as a health care declaration, allows individuals to clearly explain what they do and do not want in terms of their own medical care, and it is not necessary to be a medical expert to complete this document, although it helps to be familiar with various medical procedures commonly administered.
In most states in the United States, a living will asks whether or not the individual wants to receive life-prolonging treatments, which may include blood transfusions, CPR, diagnostic tests, dialysis, the administration of drugs, the use of a respirator and surgery.
Individuals may also choose to request no administration of food and water if they are close to death from a very serious illness or permanently comotose, rather than receiving IV feeding or tube feeding. Individuals who wish for death to occur naturally can also request palliative care, or pain relief, which focuses on maintaining a quality of life and dignity without the use of other life-prolonging treatments.
The living will is just one of three common advance directives. Other directives include a medical or health care power of attorney (POA), which designates an individual to make health care decisions, and a do not resuscitate (DNR) order, which is a request to not have CPR performed if the individual's heart stops or they stop breathing. Advance directives do not need to include a DNR order, and there is no need to have an advance directive to have a DNR order, which may be added to a medical chart.
According to him, living wills won't cover every possible situation so many clients opt to have a medical POA to designate a trusted individual, typically a family member, to act as a health care agent.
He stresses the importance of ensuring doctors, family members and the designated health care proxy know about these advance directives, as they do no good if no one knows they exist. She suggests discussing end-of-life medical treatments with a doctor, who can answer questions about specific treatments for help deciding what should or should not be included in the living will.
Miami Probate Attorney represents clients in estate planning, wills and trust planning throughout the state of Florida, with years of experience helping individuals state their wishes regarding medical treatment and preferences to prepare for the unexpected. She may be contacted through his website.
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