When you are planning for the end of your life, you need to create legal documents that will show what you want to happen with your medical care. Otherwise, loved ones and doctors won’t know exactly how you’d like to be treated.
That’s why it’s critical to set up an advance directive. But you’re wondering: will it help in an emergency? Here’s some more information.
What Is an Advance Directive?
An advance directive is a legal document that outlines how you want medical decisions to be handled if you cannot make them yourself. It will also stipulate who you want to make those decisions for you. For instance, if someone is badly injured and goes into a coma, their family may not know whether or not to keep them on life support. But if this person had an advance directive in place, then the family would know what to do.
Are Advance Directives Used in Emergencies?
As long as advance directives are done the correct way, then they can absolutely be used and recognized in emergencies. In fact, that’s what they are for. To ensure yours is legal, you should create it with the help of an estate planning attorney, choose who you want your health care agent to be, have a witness when you sign it, and give copies to your loved ones, health care agent, and doctor to ensure everyone is on the same page.
Get In Touch With An Estate Planning Attorney
To create an advance directive that can be used in an emergency, you should contact the estate planning attorneys at Legacy Law Group in Eastern Washington, Spokane Valley, and Spokane itself. Contact us at (509) 315-8087 today to get started.
