Section HI describes planning for disability, such as powers of attorney, advance
medical directives, guardianships, and Medicaid.
"The
Medical Directive. A New Comprehensive Advance Care Document." JAMA 261(22):3288-93, June 9, 1989.
The first 5,000 copies of In Life and Death We Belong to the Lord: Considering Advance
Medical Directives were distributed quickly throughout the nation.
The simple goal of this effort is to provide information and tools to assist with thoughtful reflection on healthcare choices and ideas on how to get more people to complete
medical directives. Last year over 250,000 people obtained the resources to make their wishes known, but millions still need help.
Gary Fischer et al., "Comparision of Physician and Patient Choices and Stability in the
Medical Directive," Journal of General Internal Medicine 9 (1994): 93.
Open communication is vital when discussing the need for legal documents such as an advanced
medical directive, a limited medical power of attorney, a limited financial power of attorney, and a durable power of attorney.
This section offers an advantage over the "
medical directive" that was proposed by the Emanuels in 1989 in that it asks the patient to focus fully on clarifying his or her values-related reasons for specific treatment choices.
Emanuel LL, Emanuel EJ: The
medical directive: New comprehensive advance care document.
Talking openly about things like wills and trusts, life insurance and advance
medical directives can help you understand what they have in place, and give you insight into their intentions, Young says.
She drafts estate planning documents such as wills, trusts, advance
medical directives and financial powers of attorney.
She said she especially enjoys working with military veterans on matters such as estate planning and
medical directives.
The procedures for the long-awaited system are too complicated as seen, for example, in the provision that the Advance
Medical Directives (AMD) for relatively healthy patients who want to forego life-sustaining treatment if they are stricken with a terminal illness later, should be signed even by grand grandparents or grandchildren.
