Frequently Asked Questions About Advance Healthcare Directives

Who decides about my treatment?

Doctors provide you with information and advice about treatment, but you have the right to choose which treatment option(s) will be followed. You can say “Yes” to treatments you want, and “No” to any treatment you don’t want–even if the treatment that you refuse might keep you alive longer.

How do I know what I want?

Doctors must tell you about your medical condition, explain what different treatments can do for you and what “side effects” they may cause. Your doctor must offer you information about any serious problems that a medical treatment is likely to cause you. Often, more than one treatment might help you–and people have different ideas about which is best. Your doctor can tell you which treatments are available, but he or she can’t choose for you. That choice depends on what is important to you.

What if I’m too sick to decide?

If you can’t make treatment decisions, your doctor will ask your closest available relative or friend to help decide what is best for you. Most of the time, that works. But sometimes everyone doesn’t agree about what to do. That’s why it is helpful if you specify in advance what you want to happen in case you can’t speak for yourself later. There are several kinds of “advance directives” that you can use to say what you want and who you want to speak for you.

What are the types of Advance Healthcare Directives?

There are a few categories of Advance Directives including Durable Power of Attorney, a “living will,” and a Natural Death Act Declaration ---which are all outlined below. The newest form of a directive is an Advance Healthcare Directive Form, which can be obtained from the hospital or by visiting our Resources and Links section. The first kind of advance directive under California law lets you name someone to make health care decisions when you can’t. This form is called a DURABLE POWER OF ATTORNEY FOR HEALTHCARE.

Who can fill out a Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare form?

If you are 18 years or older and of sound mind you are able to complete a Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare form. You do not need a lawyer to fill it out.

Who can I name to make treatment decisions when I’m unable to do so?

You can choose an adult relative or friend you trust as your “agent” to speak for you when you’re too sick to make your own decisions. Among those people you cannot designate as your agent are your healthcare provider or any employee of your healthcare provider unless that person is a friend employed by the same provider as the patient completing the durable power of attorney for healthcare.

How does this person know what I would want?

After you choose someone, talk to that person about what you want. You can also write down in the Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare when you would or wouldn’t want medical treatment. Talk to your doctor about what you want and give your doctor a copy of the form. Give copies to the person named as your agent, any alternative agents and family members. And take a copy with you when you go into a hospital or other treatment facility. Sometimes treatment decisions are hard to make and it truly helps your family and your doctors if they know what you want. The Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare also gives them legal protection when they follow your wishes.

What if I don’t have anybody to make decisions for me?

If you can’t decide on an “agent,” you can use another kind of advance directive to write down your wishes about treatment. This is often called a “living will” because it takes effect while you are still alive but have become unable to speak for yourself. The California Natural Death Act lets you sign a living will called a declaration. Anyone 18 years or older and of sound mind can sign one without an attorney. When you sign a declaration it tells your doctors that you don’t want any treatment that would only prolong your dying. All life-sustaining treatment would be stopped if you were terminally ill and your death was expected soon, or if you were permanently unconscious. You would still receive treatment to keep you comfortable however. The doctors must follow your wishes about limiting treatment or turn your care over to another doctor who will. Your doctors are also legally protected when they follow your wishes.

Are there other living wills I can use?

Instead of using the declaration in the Natural Death Act, you can use any of the available living will forms. You can use a Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare form without naming an agent. Or you can just write down your wishes on a piece of paper. Your doctors and family can use what you write to decide about your treatment. But living wills that don’t meet the requirements of the Natural Death Act don’t give as much legal protection for your doctors if a disagreement arises about following your wishes.

What if I change my mind?

You can change or revoke any of these documents at any time as long as you can communicate your wishes.

Must I complete one of these forms?

No, you don’t have to fill out any of these forms if you don’t want to. You can just talk with your doctors and ask them to write down what you’ve said in your medical chart. And you can talk with your family. But people will understand your treatment wishes more clearly if you write them down. And your wishes are more likely to be followed if you write them down.

Will I still be treated if I don’t fill out these forms?

Absolutely. You will still get medical treatment. We just want you to know that, if you become too sick to make decisions, someone else will have to make them for you. Remember that:

A Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare lets you name someone to make treatment decisions for you. That person can make most medical decisions–not just those about life-sustaining treatment–when you can’t speak for yourself. Besides naming an agent, you can also use the form to specify when you would and wouldn't want particular kinds of treatment.

If you don’t have someone you want to name to make decisions when you can’t, you can sign a Natural Death Act Declaration. This declaration says that you do not want life prolonging treatment if you are terminally ill or permanently unconscious.

How can I get more information about Advance Healthcare Directives?

If you would like to complete an Advance Directive, please ask your nurse for a copy or call patient relations at 949/764-8220 (ext. 2220 from inside the hospital). Hospital employees cannot witness these forms and therefore you are encouraged to complete them before coming to the hospital. If you wish to complete one while you are here, contact a family member and a friend or a Notary Public to come in to witness your signature. All of us at Hoag Hospital want our patients to understand their right to make medical treatment decisions. The hospital complies with California laws and court decisions on advance directives. We do not condition or otherwise discriminate against anyone based on whether or not you have completed an advance directive. We have formal policies to ensure that your wishes about treatment will be followed.

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