Advance Directives

As a volunteer for Hospice, I cannot stress how important it is to take the time to prepare advance directives.

Advance directives refer to two types of legal documents that allow you to plan for and to communicate your end-of-life wishes if you become unable to communicate those issues yourself. These documents are a living will and a medical power of attorney.

When someone enters hospice care, they are offered the opportunity to fill out both of these forms. And, it is especially important that this be a main priority because people who enter the hospice care program are terminally ill with a life expectation of six months or less.

However, the tragic case of Terri Schiavo highlights the need for people to consider what their end-of-life wishes are before a crisis occurs. While it may be true that physicians or family members might overlook or overrule written advance directives, filling out these documents is a good opportunity to allow a family to express their individual thoughts and concerns about their own end-of-life process.

Designating a legal health care proxy is also a big step toward ensuring that a person who is in tune with your individual wishes, whether it be a family member or a close friend will be prepared to speak for you in the event that you no longer have the ability to speak for yourself.

You may also obtain a form called Five Wishes from the Aging With Dignity Organization. I will provide links for all the forms at the bottom of this article.

When a family loses a loved one, individual wishes and concerns come into play in regard as to what the deceased person would want in terms of a funeral or a rite of passage ceremony. Conflicting thoughts and ideas may cause even more stress and grief during the week or two following the death. This is especially apt to occur in the event of an unexpected death. Many families have no idea what-so-ever about their loved ones fears and concerns about the end-of-life process, since death is not a comfortable topic for discussion.

After I finished my volunteer training with Hospice, I decided to pursue some further training opportunities with Hospice College online. After taking the class about advance directives, I called my family together and passed out the living will forms. I tried to make it as much of a positive experience as was possible, considering the topic. I was truly amazed at the feelings that my spouse and my children expressed concerning the end-of-life experience.

Each of my children and their families have the copies for themselves, as well as a copy of my husbands and mine, and I have a copy of all of theirs as well. It is not so much the paperwork that matters as it is the fact that we have had the discussion, and we know about each others expectations.

When sudden death claims a family member, those left behind go into shock. It is difficult to just make it through each moment, let alone having to make decisions concerning obituaries and funeral planning. Knowing what that loved one wanted makes the ordeal much easier to handle.

Sometimes a discussion among family members is not possible. But, alerting the family to the fact that you do have a living will and where it is located is important. It is equally important to have a discussion with the person that you wish to appoint as your proxy. Don't forget they will be your voice if you cannot speak.

I would not take a trip without doing some advance planning. And, I don't expect that I will take the last journey of my life without some advance planning also. The more I can plan ahead, the less anguish I am going to put my family through when the time comes for me to depart from this world.