Posted on 12/07/2015 4:42:27 PM PST by Chickensoup
After 15 years with my medical group, I received the advanced directive from them. Modeled after the Obama care directive it was interesting to note that the doctor's group directive asks whether one wants to choose whether to be KEPT ALIVE when one has an illness that will not get better, cannot be cured, and will result in one's death quite soon, i.e. a terminal condition.
Or when one is no longer unconscious, and likely one would never regain conscious again.
The other choice is to be kept alive as long as possible.
All other directives I see ask whether one chooses to PROLONG life, not whether one is to be KEPT ALIVE.
I am not sure that I am comfortable with a practice that wants to know whether I should be eliminated in certain circumstances versus allowing death to happen
Or when one is no longer unconscious, and likely one would never regain conscious again.
The other choice is to be kept alive as long as possible.
All other directives I see ask whether one chooses to PROLONG life, not whether one is to be KEPT ALIVE.
I am not sure that I am comfortable with a practice that wants to know whether I should be eliminated in certain circumstances versus allowing death to happen
Any one else seeing this in advance directives handed out by their doctors? Sounds like the beginning of killing of the elderly and weak. No one has a monopoly on evil.
Some congresscritter doesn’t believe you need to be kept alive after 70.
Bkmrk
So seventy is it? Hmmmmmm
Thinking of all the vital 70 year olds I know who teach, nurse, mentor, vacation, love, and nurture.
Let me get back to you on this.
I don’t think you are under any obligation to use their form. Check out Five Wishes - here is the wiki link & there are links there:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_Wishes
A lot of hospices recommend/use it and an ombudsman suggested it to me and gave me copies for someone I was caring for who was terminal.
Here’s one link to the form:
http://positivehealthcare.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Five-Wishes-for-Website_PHP.pdf
Per the Wiki link:
According to analysis by the American Bar Association’s Commission on Law and Aging, Five Wishes currently meets the legal requirements for an advance directive in the following 42 states [SEE list at wiki link] and the District of Columbia. In the remaining 8 states, (Alabama, Indiana, Kansas, New Hampshire, Ohio, Oregon, Texas, and Utah) a statutory form is required, and one must attach the state document if one wishes to use the Five Wishes document as a guide.
You’re Maine - I think you’re good on Five Wishes if you want to use it.
Bkmrk.
That is the one the hospital here uses.
It is set up so your trusted next of kin are allowed to make these decisions for you, per your written directive.
I've filled one out via the VA for my adult child to have final word of my wishes should I become incapacitated.
Of course if you have the money you can go cryogenics and wait until there is a cure.
My family has this all covered along with a lot of ethical discussions.
We had seven people die of cancer in a period of seven years and my sons were aware of every step my sisters and I moved through in this nightmare. We took care of everyone with central authority being ourselves when things turned bad. It was amazing that we had no conflict nor doubt of what we were dealing with through the phases of cancer and it’s treatment. Everyone was aware of everything, first hand.
So write your own. There is no legal reason why you have to check one of their boxes.
Write down what you want, have it witnessed by a notary and make sure that your health care proxies have copies and understand what it is you want.
It is not difficult. Don’t be sheep.
I think that there are other forms, I have my own lawyer drawn up document
However the unthinking and innocent may end up using this form, that is being pushed by my primary care via obamacare.
I have no problem with advanced directives
How ever one that wants to know whether you want to be KEPT ALIVE, instead of the more typical, have your life prolonged, is a bit creepy.
I worked in hospital administration for years so I know something about this stuff.In short,unless a directive is properly drawn up in accordance with state law there's no guarantee that your wishes will be honored.One possibility is that in a critical situation a hospital lawyer could decide that you'll be kept alive by artificial means despite evidence that that lawyer considers insufficient that your wish would be to be allowed to die.
Not sheep, have my own but I found it very creepy.
Been there done that.
Yes, I left out that they must be formed based on the state. But the state forms do not have “boxes”. There are plenty of forms that do, but I have seen them with “all available resources” to keep them alive. I think it was in Vermont.
Whatever you want to do, get it done. Get it in writing. Give someone the power to make the decisions. Give them the ability to access your funds to pay for it (those are two very different things—health care proxy and POA).
Do not wait until it is too late. Most people wait too long.
I work in a hospital....I cannot tell you the number of folks that have no plan in place...directing their end of life desires.....
It's important folks....
Get your wishes known...and documented.
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