can my husband make medical decisions for me?

[huggerwocky]

In case I need to transfer and can't talk for some reason ( pain, unconscious) can my husband legally make medical decisions for me? If not, how can I set something up so he can?

[aisraeltax]

he is the next of kin, so yes you can. but its ALWAYS BETTER to have it in writing. Draft a LIVING WILL and make him your HEALTH CARE PROXY. By law, it is his right but hospitals and drs. have been known to challenge spouses before..wouldnt be the first time.
good luck!
rach

[huggerwocky]

Originally Posted by aisraeltax

he is the next of kin, so yes you can. but its ALWAYS BETTER to have it in writing. Draft a LIVING WILL and make him your HEALTH CARE PROXY. By law, it is his right but hospitals and drs. have been known to challenge spouses before..wouldnt be the first time.
good luck!
rach

Can I find instructions for that on-line somewhere? Does it have to be notarized or something?

Sorry, but I'm clueless.

[elmh23]

I'm pretty sure you could just put in writing something to the affect of:

In case of a medical emergency where I am unable to communicate, my husband, STATE HIS NAME, should make all medical dissions for me.

Then take it to a notarizor (sp?) and sign it. Most bank have notary services (at least around here.)

[aisraeltax]

the requirements are set by the state. so, i would have to know what state you are in. i didnt see that in your siggy but ill look again. pm me if you dont want to make it public.
rach

[aisraeltax]

a few links: http://www.network17.org/pservices/ahcd_summary.htm

one more: http://www.uslegalforms.com/livingwi...will-forms.htm

pm me if you have questions (saw you were in Ca.)

[huggerwocky]

Originally Posted by aisraeltax

the requirements are set by the state. so, i would have to know what state you are in. i didnt see that in your siggy but ill look again. pm me if you dont want to make it public.
rach

I'm in California

[huggerwocky]

Originally Posted by aisraeltax

a few links: http://www.network17.org/pservices/ahcd_summary.htm

one more: http://www.uslegalforms.com/livingwi...will-forms.htm

pm me if you have questions (saw you were in Ca.)

Thank you for the links.

[huggerwocky]

ouch, 24 $!

Any free ( or less expensive) form floating around somewhere?

[aisraeltax]

didnt realize those charged. there are free forms. dont pay for those. ill try again tomorrow.
im not good nak'g w/ my left hand, kwim?

[WinterBaby]

He already has legal right to make those medical decisions, you need no extra paperwork to make it so, your marriage certificate does it in this country. The more important thing is discussing these issues with him, as well as with all your other immediate family to be sure you are all on the same page and everyone is aware of what your feelings and wishes are. A living will is good, but it doesn't even mean a thing unless your spouse is on board with it. And if a doctor or hospital is going to challenge your spouse, they'll be doing it because they honestly feel he is making irresponsible and damaging decisions to you, and redundant paperwork won't stop them from making the challenge, imo.

[doctorjen]

You are safest, from a legal point of view, to appoint a durable power of attorney for health care (in this case your dh), and then discuss in detail with him what your wishes might be. I disagree that such paperwork is redundant. Taking the time to make a durable power of attorney for healthcare document shows evidence of your prior thought to situations where you are unable to make your own decisions. Being married hasn't stopped a bunch of cases in which the spouse wanted to do something the rest of the family didn't like ending up in court.

Many states do have laws that allow next of kin to make decisions if you are incapacitated, but you want to be careful relying on them. Some states specify conditions that must be met, such as an irreversible coma before a surrogate can stop life support for example. A durable power of attorney for healthcare has the right to act AS IF THEY WERE YOU, so you are more likely to get your wishes followed if you have a durable power who is willing to follow your wishes.

Living wills are problematic in that they require certain conditions to be met also. They usually say something about when it is believed that you are dying, or in a coma, or persistent vegetative state, THEN you don't want life sustaining treatment. It relies on your physician agreeing that the conditions have been met, though, and occasionally family members find that it's a physician doesn't agree, or you are in an unforeseeable situation not covered by your living will.

One other tip, if you have any wishes that might be unorthodox, or you think the medical community might frown on, you can right those wishes in a private letter to your dh, which is dated, and then he will have those wishes written down should he need any backup when making decisions for you. Technically, this should not be necessary, but sometimes durable powers find that physicians don't believe that they know what the patient wouldn't have wanted if it seems unusual (like refusing life support while pregnant for example) If there is no trouble with decision making, the letter can stay private, and if physicians won't go along with your wishes, it can be presented as evidence of your wishes.

Be careful about putting too many specifics into your durable power of attorney docuent. It is very difficult to think in advance about every possible odd situation. Better to give your durable power of attorney a general idea of your wishes and make sure you are on the same page, then trust him to act for you.

[JustJamie]

I agree that if you have any specific wishes, put it in writing.

For example, my mother has a living will that names me as the person to make medical choices on her behalf. She is an organ donor, and wishes to be kept on life support only long enough for her organs to be harvested and then she wants the plug pulled, but only if there is a reasonable medical certainty that she will suffer a debilitating injury or brain damage.

My living will names my husband, and reads pretty much the same, with the addition that I also want my head shaved and my hair donated to Locks of Love, and as much blood as they can or will take.

[aisraeltax]

Originally Posted by WinterBaby

He already has legal right to make those medical decisions, you need no extra paperwork to make it so, your marriage certificate does it in this country. The more important thing is discussing these issues with him, as well as with all your other immediate family to be sure you are all on the same page and everyone is aware of what your feelings and wishes are. A living will is good, but it doesn't even mean a thing unless your spouse is on board with it. And if a doctor or hospital is going to challenge your spouse, they'll be doing it because they honestly feel he is making irresponsible and damaging decisions to you, and redundant paperwork won't stop them from making the challenge, imo.

the Terry Shivo case proves that this is not accurate. sorry. a Living Will and Health Care Proxy, if done according to state law, must be respected by the courts. period. And if your dh is trying to do something that is opposite your LW, then of course he won't have authority, but that will be b/c he isn't responding to YOUR wishes, not that the LW is no good. it will be doing exactly what YOU want it to do.

[doctorjen]

Originally Posted by aisraeltax

the Terry Shivo case proves that this is not accurate. sorry. a Living Will and Health Care Proxy, if done according to state law, must be respected by the courts. period. And if your dh is trying to do something that is opposite your LW, then of course he won't have authority, but that will be b/c he isn't responding to YOUR wishes, not that the LW is no good. it will be doing exactly what YOU want it to do.

I did a fellowship in medical ethics, and took coursework in health ethics law, and served on a large ethics consulting service for a year. I have seen numerous cases where the living will was not helpful at all. They generally spell out conditions in which you do not want life sustaining treatment, but if the conditions aren't met, docs sometimes refuse to follow them. And you can go to court, and you will probably even win, but who wants to do that, especially since it costs money, and may take years?

For example, if the family feels like someone is in a persistent vegetative state and doesn't want a feeding tube, but the doc feels that since the injury occurred due to a trauma you are obligated to wait 3 mos before declaring it a persistent vegetative state.
Or if you have surgery and have grave complications, but the docs won't agree that you are unlikely to recover, because they are concerned about litigation if you die as a result of surgery.

A durable power of attorney for health care gives your designated surrogate the right to act as if they were you, and does not limit their power to situations spelled out in a living will. If you have someone you trust to make decision for you, that is the way to go.