Advance Directive PDF For Free

An advance directive encompasses all legal orders which concern your wishes surrounding future medical care. The document will come into play in the case of severe medical situations in which you're not able to communicate your wishes or make decisions. These may include such conditions as a coma, stroke or dementia.

Creating advance directivesAdvance directives need to be in writing. Each state has different forms and requirements for creating legal documents. Depending on where you live, a form may need to be signed by a witness or notarized. You can ask a lawyer to help you with the process, but it is generally not necessary.

An advance directive is a legal document that explains how you want medical decisions about you to be made if you cannot make the decisions yourself. An advance directive lets your health care team and loved ones know what kind of health care you want, or who you want to make decisions for you when you can't.

The advance directive allows you to make specific written instructions for your future health care in the event of any situation in which you can no longer speak for yourself. It outlines your wishes about life-sustaining medical treatment if you are terminally ill or permanently unconscious, for example.

The most common types of advance directives are the living will and the durable power of attorney for health care (sometimes known as the medical power of attorney).

Get an advance directive from any of these:Your health care provider.Your attorney.Your local Area Agency on Aging.Your state health department.

Terms in this set (16)Advance Directives. -People have the right to make decisions regarding their health care.Living Will.Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care.Anatomical Gifts.Patient Self-Determination Act.Human, Civil, and Client Rights.The Patient's Bill of Rights.The Right to Information Disclosure.More items...