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25 SUGGESTED TOPICS TO DISCUSS WITH YOUR HEALTH CARE AGENT
Before having your health care agent sign any forms, you should discuss your
beliefs and wishes with him or her. When instructing your health care agent
about your wishes in the event you become incapacitated and the agent needs to
make health care decisions, we suggest you consider the following questions. We
suggest no particular answers. Each person should answer these questions based
on his or her own beliefs and convey those beliefs and wishes to his or her
health care agent. Any other wishes or desire that you feel your health care
agent should know should also be given to the agent so that he or she can carry
out his or her responsibilities as you would wish.
1.
Do you think it is a good idea to sign a legal document that says what medical
treatments you want and do not want when you are dying? (This is called a
"living will.")
2. Do you think you would want to have any of the
following medical treatments performed on you?
a.
Kidney dialysis (used if your kidneys stop working)
b.
Cardiopulmonary resuscitation, also called CPR (used if your heart stops
beating)
c.
Respirator (used if you are unable to breathe on your own)
d.
Artificial nutrition (used if you are unable to eat foods)
e.
Artificial hydration (used if you are unable to drink fluids)
3.
Do you want to donate parts of your body to someone else at the time of your
death? (This is called "organ donation.")
4.
How would you describe your current health status? If you currently have any
medical problems, how would you describe them?
5.
If you have current medical problems, in what ways, if any, do they affect your
ability to function?
6.
How do you feel about your current health status?
7.
If you have a doctor, do you like him or her? Why?
8.
Do you think your doctor should make the final decision about any medical
treatments you might need?
9.
How important is independence and self-sufficiency in your life?
10. If your physical and mental abilities were decreased, how would that
affect your attitude toward independence and self-sufficiency?
11. Do you wish to make any general comments about the value of
independence and control in your life?
12. Do you expect that your friends, family and/or others will support
your decisions regarding medical treatment you may need now or in the future?
13. What will be important to you when you are dying (e.g., physical
comfort, no pain, family members present, etc.)?
14. Where would you prefer to die?
15. What is your attitude toward death?
16. How do you feel about the use of life-sustaining measures in the face
of terminal illness?
17. How do you feel about the use of life-sustaining measures in the face
of permanent coma?
18. How do you feel about the use of life-sustaining measures in the face
of irreversible chronic illness (e.g., Alzheimer's disease)?
19. Do you wish to make any general comments about your attitude toward
illness, dying, and death?
20. What is your religious background?
21. How do your religious beliefs affect your attitude toward serious or
terminal illness?
22. Does your attitude toward death find support in your religion?
23. How does your faith community, church or synagogue view the role of
prayer or religious sacraments in an illness?
24. Do you wish to make any general comments about your religious
background and beliefs?
25. What else do you feel is important for your agent to know?
If,
over time, your beliefs or attitudes in any area change, you should inform your
health care agent. It is also wise to inform your health care agent of the
status of your health when there are changes such as new diagnoses. In the event
you are informed of a terminal illness, this, as well as the ramifications of
it, should be discussed with him or her. How well your health care agent
performs depends on how well you have prepared him or her.1
1 Dicks, Power of Attorney for
Health Care: A Manual for Legal Practitioners & Health Care Providers
(Center for Public Representation Mar. 1991).
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