WRITING YOUR LIVING WILL

by Ross Bishop

If you will bear with me, I wish to discuss a difficult subject. I want to talk with you about your death. It is not a pleasant subject and few people want to think about it. Unfortunately for a few of us, the end will come early and unexpectedly. If you are unable to communicate your desires, does your family know your wishes? Who will make the decisions for you? Will there be conflicts? Will those decisions be the ones you would have made?

Dealing with those questions today brings up difficult choices that youâd probably rather not think about but we all saw the horrible nightmare that Terri Schiavoâs family went through when she was unable to make decisions for herself regarding her health care. If you want to keep Tom DeLay out of the most personal of all decisions, it is important that you set your wishes and desires down now while you can.

I know it is an uncomfortable and subject to deal with, but it is something we all need to think about. To that end, I have prepared a working document that can help you to communicate your wishes to the people around you and to your doctors.

Please remember that physicians have legal obligations regarding your treatment that may conflict with your wishes, and with malpractice these days they must protect themselves from lawsuits from family members who may be caught up with their own feelings of grief and loss as happened to the Schiavo family. The clearer your expression of desire is under these circumstances, the easier it is for everyone to accede to your wishes.

The document that follows is by no means a bullet-proof legal document, and I am not offering legal advice here, but most courts and medical authorities will respect your expressed wishes so long as they do not conflict with state law.

The ideas in the draft Living Will are suggestions. They are a beginning. They are intended to cover many situations and to give you ideas you may not have thought about on your own. Change and modify as you wish - this is your document, so please make it so. Spend some time really thinking about what you want.

Many states have passed living will laws, so be sure that your requests conform with your state law. As an example, your state may use another term for Health Care Agent or, your state may have a different way of determining whether or not you are able to make health care choices, who may be a witness, etc. It would be a good idea to make a few telephone calls to be sure that what you have expressed in your Living Will does not conflict with decisions made by your state government.

Choosing a Health Care Agent:
Choose someone who knows you very well, cares about you and can make difficult decisions. Make sure that this person agrees to respect your wishes. A spouse or family member is often not a good choice because they will likely be emotionally involved in what is happening. Choose someone who will stand up for you against the system or even your family if necessary so that your wishes will be followed.

Also, choose someone who lives fairly close so that they can be there when you need them. They should be at least 18 years old and should not be financially involved in the distribution of your estate. They also should NOT be your health care provider or the owner or operator of a health care or residential facility serving you, or an employee of your health care provider. Someone serving as a proxy for a number of other people is also not a good choice.

It is likely that your partner will have control of the checkbook and by the Living Will you will have granted decision making to your Health Care Agent. That can be a source of substantial conflict unless these things are discussed and clarified ahead of time.

If you change your mind about having a Health Care Agent, or any other part of the Will, destroy all copies of it and make a new document. Tell your doctor and family about the changes you have made and document those changes.

You can write the word REVOKED in large letters across the name of each agent whose authority you want to cancel or the section you want to change. Then sign your name and date on that page.

Distribute this document openly so that your family, friends and physicians are clearly aware of your desires. Do NOT keep a single copy of this document locked away someplace like a safe-deposit box. You might want to record who has copies of your Living Will so that if you make changes you can be sure everyone receives an updated copy or are at least notified that you have made changes.

Update your Living Will as your desires change and especially if there are changes to the lives or domiciles of your Health Care Agent(s) or witnesses.

LIFE SUPPORT
If you wish to limit the meaning of life-support treatment because of religious or personal beliefs, make the appropriate changes in that section.

RESUSCITATION
Many states require that you have a DO NOT RESUSCITATE form signed by a doctor and/or a DO NOT RESUSCITATE bracelet if you do not desire these procedures. This lets emergency personnel know your wishes. Check with your doctor.

WITNESSES
Some states have specific rules about who can be witnesses.

Notarization of a Living Will is required for residents of Missouri, North Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia.

Download a Living Will by clicking on the PDF.