Health Care Power Of Attorney Essay

694 Words3 Pages
Which one should you pick, Living will or Healthcare Power of Attorney? What is the difference? Is one better than the other, or should you have both? Let's start with a Living Will. A Living Will is a document that is used to let others know what your end of life wishes are. It includes things such as medicine that you do or do not want, what life saving measures are to be taken, if you want to be on life support or not. This document goes into effect when you become incapacitated and there is no hope of your ultimate recovery. If, for example, you have a heart attack and aren't able to speak, this document will not go into effect, because it is not a terminal illness, so after surgery there is hope of your recovery. This document is important because it helps your family members by relieving them of tough decisions about your life and health. It also helps your healthcare provider. "In order to obtain a living will, you must have a certificate from your doctor, that you are not suffering any mental illness, and that you are of sound mind when you make end of life decisions." With that said, what happens when you don't have a terminal illness, but you are unconscious and are not able to make decisions for yourself? What happens then? This brings us to our next topic, the Health Care Power…show more content…
It is a document used to appoint a person who will make health care decisions for you in case you become unconscious and are not able to make that decision for yourself. This person is then referred to as an "agent." This document goes into effect immediately after signing. If you are of sound mind, and are conscious, you may make the decisions yourself. Your "agent" may make decisions for you only after the doctor puts in writing that you are incompetent. It is in effect indefinitely, unless it specifies a termination date. If you specify your spouse as your "agent", and later you get a divorce, the document becomes
Open Document