A Living Will Fills the Bill And It Is Good for You Bacon Please! A Living Will Fills the Bill And It Is Good for You

A Positive Thought “Life expectancy would grow by leaps and bounds if green vegetables smelled as good as bacon.”

Not everything that is good for you is as good as bacon! but the truth is… Not everything that is good for you is as good as bacon! In fact, too much bacon can be bad for you! When facing decisions, the easiest thing to do is nothing More often than not, the worst thing you can do is nothing

What is a Living Will and Why Is It Good for You? - A living will is an advanced health care directive -May be called, personal directive, medical directive or advanced decision. -It is a legal document specifying what action should be taken in health decisions when the patient is no longer able to make decisions for themselves

Because of the increasing sophistication in medical technology Why have a living will? Because of the increasing sophistication in medical technology Documented studies highlight deficits in the medical care of the dying Unnecessarily prolonged, painful, expensive, and emotionally burdensome treatments continue The process of dying is emotionally burdensome to both patients and families

A living will is the oldest form of an advance directive (1969) Background A living will is the oldest form of an advance directive (1969) The purpose is to allow a person to control their health decisions even when they no longer able to make current decisions The patient self-determination act “PSDA” went into effect in December 1991 The PSDA requires all healthcare providers to give patients information about their rights to make advance directives

Issues and Implementation To limited in scope Did not address problems and needs sufficiently Unclear Not applicable in every situation Requires interpretation A second-generation directive created

The Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare Power of attorney statutes allowed for naming someone to act on your behalf New document was created to appoint PA to have the same rights to request or refuse treatment that the individual would have were they capable Without conversations about patients wishes, guesswork continued

Linking patients values with medical treatment Third-generation A move from specific treatments and procedures to focus on patient values and goals Linking patients values with medical treatment Evidence that values regarding financial and psychological burden are motivators not to want a broader array of end-of-life therapies

This document meets the statutory requirements In 42 states Five Wishes Five wishes is the most widely known third-generation advanced directive This document meets the statutory requirements In 42 states Offered by nonprofit called Aging with Dignity NetLaw documents are specifically designed for each state

This Is Where You Come In Experts believe both a living will and a durable power of attorney for healthcare should be completed at the same time Your state law and state approved documents are important. MOST. PLOST To review the documents and be comfortable with the conversation

Can a Living Will Help? Medical intervention leaves 2 million Americans committed to nursing homes 1.4 million are so medically frail they survive only through the use of feeding tubes As many as 30,000 Americans are kept alive in a comatose and permanently vegetative state Cost burdens to individuals and families are considerable. A national study found that: “In 20% of cases, a family member had to quit work;” 31% lost “all or most savings” (even though 96% had insurance); and “20% reported loss of [their] major source of income.”

But… Studies indicate that 70-95% of people would rather refuse aggressive medical treatment than have their lives medically prolonged in incompetent or another poor prognosis state.

DNR Just what is a DNR? - It sounds scary, it implies life saving medical procedures will be withheld- It is not in order to stop treatment to keep you alive -It does mean when your heart stops that you do not wish to receive CPR or ventilator care Do all you can to keep me alive, but when dead, then let me go- Steven Keernan

The privilege of being an advisor Clients become your friends Your device can be critical to the success of the family you advise Continuing education is part of your role Clients rely on your wisdom You become a family friend Your business grows as you learn more and more about the needs of the family

An important stated value Implies financial wellness No family left behind An important stated value Implies financial wellness It also means medical preparedness It means moving from uninformed to informed It means moving from not making decisions to deciding what is right and following through It means helping families where they need help the most

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Next week The Must Trust or why have a family trust?

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