Families are often faced with decisions for loved ones that they aren't really prepared to make. They may find themselves suddenly standing at the hospital bedside of a parent or grandparent who can no longer speak for themselves. And there are decisions to be made - tough ones.
No one really likes to think about it, but some thoughtful planning and open discussion about medical care decisions can save some of the heartache for loved ones during a difficult period down the road. It can also ensure that you receive medical care based on your own wishes and values.
Advance directives make it possible for your wishes to be honored in the event you are unable to make your own health-care decisions.
“It’s about making your voice heard,” says Barton Buxton, president and CEO of Lapeer Regional Medical Center. Buxton encourages people to address the issues ahead of time, while in good health. “When someone’s suffering ... it’s the worst time to wonder what someone wanted,” Buxton says.
After discovering that only 11 percent of patients discharged from LRMC already had prepared advance directives, Buxton’s on a mission to make people aware of their importance and urge them to create their own. The hardest part is thinking about it and discussing it with people you trust. Then, get it written down.
LRMC makes a form easily available right on the center’s website at www.lapeerregional.org. It is also available at the hospital. You don’t have to prepare one, it’s just good advice. And it doesn’t cost anything.
LRMC social worker Linda Robinson says, “The form prompts a discussion about wishes and how they can be upheld.” The LRMC form is accompanied by information and definitions that spell everything out. There is a wealth of information and alternative forms on-line.
The LRMC form includes a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care. This is a legal document in which you name the person, and up to two successors, who will make health care decisions for you if you become temporarily or permanently unable to make thoss choices on your own. It may be voluntarily executed by anyone over 18 years of age. An attorney is not necessary to execute the form, but you do need appropriate witnesses.
Whoever you designate to be your advocate must accept the job if the need arises. Your advocate’s decision-making is limited to your medical care. Robinson says your advocate should be “someone you really trust and that you know is going to act in your best interest.”
A living will is an advance directive that spells out your wishes about life-sustaining treatment. The LRMC form includes choices in this regard, or you can write our your own. Some patients wish to have all means exhausted to prolong their life. Other patients do not want life-sustaining treatment under certain conditions. Unlike a durable power of attorney for health care, the living will is not written into Michigan law.
A do-not-resuscitate directive is another advance directive that tells health care providers that you do not want to have steps taken to restart your heart, if it fails. Many times this becomes important to someone in hospice or other end of life situation.
A directive regarding organ donation only takes effect when a patient dies and is also included in the LRMC form.
Once you have determined what your wishes are and who you want to speak for you, if need be, make sure it’s not a secret. Discuss it with your advocate, family members and your primary care physician. Provide a copy of your document. You can change your instructions any time you want.
Buxton served as patient advocate for his dad. His father approached him on the subject when Buxton was just 17. Now, with children of his own, Buxton’s very clear about his own wishes. “There’s nobody that knows me that doesn’t know.”
Check out Lapeer Regional Medical Center’s website at www.lapeerregional.org to learn more about advance directives. If you still have questions about advance directives, you can call LRMC at 810-667-5578.
