Health care advance directives are essential for planning your health care wishes. This broad topic often includes legal matters, medical power of attorney, and the instructions you provide to future caregivers about what they can or cannot do in your treatment. Whether you need to make these decisions now or not, you must understand some key facts about this process to be prepared when the time comes.
Myths and Facts About Health Care Advance Directives
The myth that if you have an advance directive, you will automatically be taken off life support is not valid. In contrast, most advance directives indeed address end-of-life issues. The process of making decisions about your wishes for future medical treatment and providing those instructions in writing is essential at all stages of life. There may be times throughout your life when you cannot speak for yourself and need someone else to make decisions on your behalf.
It is a myth that advance directives are only needed if you have a severe illness. The fact is even if you are healthy, an accident or sudden illness could leave you incapacitated and in need of medical treatment that you would not want. Advance directives can help to ensure that your wishes are known and followed in this type of situation.
You may have heard that you have to use a specific form to create a health care advance directive. That is just a myth because some states require particular forms for advance directives.
Most allow you to use any format you choose as long as it includes the required information. This may be a document you create yourself, or you can use a form provided by an attorney or other health care professional.
It is factual that you can always change your mind about the decisions made in your advance directive. One of the benefits of advance directives is that they are revocable at any time.
If you want to change your mind about the wishes you have made, all it takes is a simple procedure. You can either use a new form or revoke your directive by destroying the original copy and telling those who need to know about it.
Making a health care advance directive is vital in ensuring that your wishes are known and followed if you cannot speak for yourself. By understanding the myths and facts about these documents, you can decide whether this is something right for you.