Directiva para médicos en nombre de un menor
STATUTORY REFERENCE
ALL REFERENCES ARE TO THE APPLICABLE TEXAS CODE
DIRECTIVE TO PHYSICIANS ON BEHALF OF A MINOR
(Texas Health and Safety Code § 166.033. Also see § 166.035 )
General information (§ 166.031)
A "directive" is an instruction to administer, withhold, or withdraw
life sustaining treatment in the event of a terminal or irreversible condition.
A "qualified patient" is a patient with a terminal or irreversible
condition that has been diagnosed and certified in writing by the attending
physician.
Execution (§ 166.035)
The following persons may execute a directive on behalf of a qualified
patient who is younger than 18 years of age:
- the patient's spouse, if the spouse is an adult;
- the patient's parents; or
- the patient's legal guardian.
Requirements (§ 166.036)
A written directive executed is effective without regard to whether
the document has been notarized.
A physician, health care facility, or health care professional may
not require that:
- a directive be notarized; or
- a person use a form provided by the physician, health care facility,
or health care professional.
Patient Desire Supersedes Directive (§ 166.037)
The desire of a qualified patient, including a qualified patient
younger than 18 years of age, supersedes the effect of a directive.
Duration of Directive (§ 166.04)
A directive is effective until it is revoked as prescribed by statute.
Revocation of Directive (§ 166.042)
A declarant may revoke a directive at any time without regard to
the declarant's mental state or competency. A directive may be revoked
by:
- the declarant or someone in the declarant's presence and at the declarant's
direction canceling, defacing, obliterating, burning, tearing, or otherwise
destroying the directive;
- the declarant signing and dating a written revocation that expresses
the declarant's intent to revoke the directive; or
- the declarant orally stating the declarant's intent to revoke the directive.
A written revocation takes effect only when the declarant or
a person acting on behalf of the declarant notifies the attending physician
of its existence or mails the revocation to the attending physician. The
attending physician or the physician's designee must record in the patient's
medical record the time and date when the physician received notice of
the written revocation and must enter the word "VOID" on each page of the
copy of the directive in the patient's medical record.
An oral revocation takes effect only when the declarant or a person
acting on behalf of the declarant notifies the attending physician of the
revocation. The attending physician or the physician's designee must record
in the patient's medical record the time, date, and place of the revocation,
and, if different, the time, date, and place that the physician received
notice of the revocation. The attending physician or the physician's designees
must also enter the word "VOID" on each page of the copy of the directive
in the patient's medical record.
Except as otherwise provided, a person is not civilly or criminally
liable for failure to act on a revocation made under this section unless
the person has actual knowledge of the revocation.
Note: All Information and Previews are subject to the Disclaimer
located on the main forms page, and also linked at the bottom of all search
results.
