Elder Law Report
Elder Law Report
Ensuring Your Health Wishes Are Respected
Unlock the crucial knowledge behind healthcare legal documents with expert insights from Jane Dearwester and Jordan McIntyre of McIntyre Elder Law. Have you ever wondered who would make medical decisions for you if you're unable to do so? Discover the vital role of a healthcare power of attorney and learn why selecting a trustworthy person—or even more than one—could ensure your wishes are honored. This episode promises to equip you with the understanding needed to navigate the challenging decisions surrounding healthcare directives and powers of attorney, regardless of your current health status.
Prepare to transform how you approach life's uncertainties with our deep dive into living wills, also known as advanced directives. These essential documents guide your healthcare providers on your wishes in critical situations, like terminal illnesses or permanent vegetative states, providing peace of mind for you and your loved ones. Whether you're a resident of Henderson, Shelby, or Charlotte, taking the step to consult with a healthcare attorney could safeguard your future decisions. Visit us at mclderlaw.com for more information and begin your journey towards informed and assured healthcare planning today.
Hi there, I'm Jane Deere-ester with McIntyre Elder Law. I'm joined today by Jordan McIntyre. Hi, jordan, hey guys, we are gonna talk to you today about healthcare powers of attorney and living wills. These are documents that we work with and advise clients on pretty much every single day, and these are documents that in some law practices, can be combined into one document and both deal with health care issues and end of life issues. But we do them separately for a variety of reasons, and I do want to mention that you don't have to be sick or ill or old to have a health care power of attorney in place or a living will in place. A lot of people make an assumption that you have to be a certain age or you have to have a certain diagnosis if you have an need for these doctors. Not true as long as you're over 18, that's pretty much the only requirement that's needed, and you know, we would argue everyone has these documents in play.
Jordan McIntyre:Yes, I was in the hospital just a month and a half ago with a serious leg infection. That's right so everybody get these documents. I didn't have them.
Jane Dearwester:Yeah, you don't. It's time, it's time. It's time we're going to get.
Jane Dearwester:Jordan's documents down. You're right, we don't think about it when we're young and healthy, but it is a good reminder that something strange or unusual or unexpected can happen at any time and you don't want to miss a beat or have confusion with your medical providers when you're in an emergency situation. So these are documents that help protect your health and truly your life in a, or if you're just in a condition, for whatever reason, you can't speak your healthcare power of attorney you can name an agent in that document. It's going to be a trusted person to help you communicate with your healthcare providers. So in choosing an agent, that's a question we get a lot of times. Jordan, maybe I'll, uh, let you talk about a little bit the importance of choosing an agent and kind of who should choose as your agent in your healthcare power of attorney.
Jordan McIntyre:I joined the firm officially as an attorney a couple months ago and I'm familiar with Jane. I know Jane. She seems very nice and agreeable and honestly, I might trust her to make a medical decision for me, but I really shouldn't. I need it to be. You know my mother, who I've known my entire life, 24 years, absolutely life, 24 years, or you know maybe my girlfriend of three years, or you know people I've known for more than two months.
Jordan McIntyre:Yes, and I think that's crucial. This is someone who is going to make a decision for you. Whether you're in a coma or you're incapacitated, they're going to make healthcare decisions for you. This needs to be someone you trust really more than anyone else. So don't appoint someone you've known just a few months that you really trust you kind of trust and you think they're very nice and agreeable but they should not be your agent.
Jane Dearwester:Absolutely, and not only do we encourage that you pick a trusted person as your agent, but we actually encourage our clients to pick more than one person right. So have your primary agent, your number one, go-to and also pick a number two. What if number one is available? But if they pre-deceased you? It just gives some long-term documents. Right to pick more than one agent and you may not have more than one personal mutual trustee, but we really encourage you to have some conversations with your loved ones, family, friends. Another thing we advise is make sure the person who you appoint knows that you appointed them. Make sure they know that they have a copy of your health care power of attorney.
Jordan McIntyre:It's not a secret.
Jane Dearwester:Yes, this is not something to do secretively. This is something you want you know out there.
Jordan McIntyre:That your trusted person knows this role. If you don't trust them, then no, they shouldn't be your agent.
Jane Dearwester:That's right. That's right and, importantly, an agent under a health care power of attorney or a financial power of attorney either one. They can't be forced to serve as your agent. They can resign. So if they really don't want to do it and you never talk to them about it and it catches them off guard they can just resign. And then what was the point of putting this in place if this person doesn't want to do it? So you definitely want to do it, but you definitely want to have this conversation with your agent for sure. Um, the other document we're talking about, the living will, or it's also sometimes called advanced directive even another name for it is advanced in an advanced directive or a natural death, and the living will take place in a very limited time, that's why we do it as a separate document and I'll let you talk about that a little bit, jim, about when the living will take place only in this very specific situation where you're basically pending terminal diagnosis.
Jordan McIntyre:Yeah, so I believe it applies in three situations when you're in a permanent vegetative state, when you have a terminal and incurable condition, or in certain stages of advanced dementia.
Jordan McIntyre:Or in certain stages of advanced dementia. This is where you have your say in the room only for these three conditions, as to whether you want to have artificial hydration or feeding. I think most people think of this as whether you want to pull the plug or not, and do you want your loved ones to make that decision, because your healthcare power of attorney could make that decision for you. However, in these three situations, you really might want to have your say in the room. Your healthcare power of attorney, even though you trust them, can be very emotional. They could not want to make these types of decisions for you and this is your say to do whatever you'd like to have, whatever happened in a very, very stressful situation, and you can really relieve the burden from your loved ones and your health care power of attorney to have that decision made for them and for you. So I would encourage everyone to do that for them and for you.
Jane Dearwester:So I would encourage everyone to do that. Yeah, that's a great way to put it, Jordan, that having your say in the room. I mean, when you think about it, this is an impossible decision to make for yourself, but to make for somebody else, it's truly impossible and it can lead to all kinds of litigation and disharmony within the family. When I'm out speaking in the community, I say the same thing that you just did, Jordan. This is who wants to pull the plug on grandma?
Jordan McIntyre:Who wants to be the one Nobody.
Jane Dearwester:No one. No one wants to do that. So we encourage our clients to really think about it and make a very informed decision for themselves. It's very personal. There's nothing that could be more personal than this type of decision and so I've had first responders and nurses, hospice care medical workers at some of our seminars and that I've met out in the community who have said make sure your clients know what it means to receive artificial nutrition and hydration, because when we say that out loud, they might think you know what it means. You really might not know what it means.
Jane Dearwester:So talk to your medical provider about what does it mean to receive artificial hydration? Does that mean to hook up to IVs? What does it mean to receive artificial nutrition? Does that mean a feeding tube and what does that process like? What would that do to my physical body? So these are somewhat strange conversations, but this is what we deal with every day. It's a strict, end-of-life conversation, but when we see clients come out of our signings, where they're coming in to sign all their documents, I see a huge sense of relief. They've made these tough decisions. They're in this good place where they know if something happens, if they receive a medical diagnosis. They've already thought about these things.
Jordan McIntyre:we just thought about them writing so that their loved ones don't have to make these tough decisions, having already extremely it really gives them peace of mind and and we have really caring, kind clients and I always enjoy seeing them make those decisions for themselves and their loved ones. So I would encourage everyone to get their living well, to have peace of mind and you'll be good to go.
Jane Dearwester:So thank you for talking about these healthcare documents with me today, and if any of you out there watching this are over the age of 18 and you don't have a healthcare attorney or a living room in place, we invite you to come in for a free consultation so you can get these and some other foundational estate planning documents in place. You can meet with us in Henderson, elby or Sharpe and you can check out our website at mclderlawcom. Thank you so much for joining us, gordon.
Jordan McIntyre:Thank you. It's always great talking to you, Jane.
Jane Dearwester:Take care.