Advantages of Advance Directives for Mental Health

Although most of you are familiar with the concept of advance directives related to end of life decisions, you may not have heard about how advance directives can make a difference for someone who succumbs from time to time to serious mental illness. Advance directives for end of life decisions about medical care have been around for a long time. You may very likely have such a directive for your health care professionals in the event you suffer a devastating medical event.

Advance Directives for Psychiatric Care Defined

According to the National Association on Mental Illness website (NAMI), an advanced directive for psychiatric care is a document you set up when you're feeling mentally well and functioning effectively. The goal is to establish the directives that you want psychiatric treatment providers to follow in the event you're hospitalized for mental health reasons in the future. Advanced directives for psychiatric care are empowering tools for you to utilize should you be hospitalized.

Advantages of Having Advance Directives for Psychiatric/Mental Health Care

There are at least 5 advantages for having your wishes for your future inpatient mental health care down on paper.

--While you're mentally competent, you can take power over any future treatment you receive in a psychiatric facility. For example, if you had a negative reaction to a specific mood-altering medication in the past, you can list that you don't want to be prescribed that drug when hospitalized.

--You can appoint someone as your durable power of attorney, should you become incompetent. In the event your mental health condition should deteriorate, your spouse, sister or whomever you choose will make treatment decisions for you (Macomb County Community Mental Health website).

--Your advance directives might actually help you prevent a return to an inpatient setting. Since you will clarify what type of treatment you wish to obtain whenever you show signs of certain problematic psychiatric symptoms, your symptoms could be treated and therefore successfully treated before you go into the hospital.

For example, if you start complaining of hearing voices, your family could help you attain the type of medication that works best for you to decrease those symptoms (specified by you in your advanced directives). Getting meds earlier could prevent your return to a psychiatric facility.

--Your advance directives, since they're written down, will help your friends and family members better understand what type of treatment you want and don't want. Thus, they'll be able to better communicate with and assist medical professionals during your inpatient mental health stay.

--Since court hearings are usually involved if a person is involuntarily (against his will) hospitalized, your advance directives can be used to help reduce your feeling at odds with whatever the court is recommending for you in the way of treatment. After all, you've specified when you were competent the type of treatment you wish to have (should you be hospitalized) that's been effective in the past.

If you have struggled with psychiatric issues and hospitalizations in the past, you might want to consider setting up your own advance directives for psychiatric care. Consult with your local mental health professional regarding the matter. Also, contact your state's mental health board to inquire about establishing these directives. Take active steps to manage your inpatient care when/if the time comes.

In the near future, watch for this author's article that focuses on the disadvantages of mental health advanced directives.

Sources

Macomb County Community Mental Health website

National Alliance on Mental Illness website

Professional experience