But advance care forms for every state are widely available on the Internet, at the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization’s website or through the National Healthcare Decision Day website, among others. Maybe they don’t like dealing with lawyers or the costs associated with them. Maybe people may think drafting an Advance Directive is complicated.
That means that only about one in 20 Americans are in position to feel secure that their personal and medical wishes will be respected if they lose the ability to directly control their own care.Īdvance Directives are legal documents that designate a medical power of attorney and provide a physician with instructions for a patient’s care when the patient is no longer able to make or express his or her health care wishes. Of those who do have an advance directive, up to 75 percent of their physicians remain unaware of it. Over 70 percent of Americans have thought about end-of-life medical decisions and would like their treatment preferences to be honored however, studies have shown that less than 20 percent of Americans have an advance directive in place. It helps to avoid the difficult situations that are so common when a person becomes seriously ill and the family is left to guess what their loved one would have wanted. While this is an uncomfortable conversation for most people, making decisions ahead of time and putting your last wishes in writing brings peace of mind to families and loved ones. A day to inspire, educate and empower the public about the importance of advance care planning, before they are too ill to make personal and medical decisions themselves.
April 16 marked National HealthCare Decisions Day.
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