Franklin VNA & Hospice’s Health Corner – wellness tidbits to keep us all a little healthier.
In this five-part series we look at what it means to age in modern times, and the steps we should take to make that process go how we want it to.
Preparing to Age, a Five Part Series: Advance Directives
April 16 is National Healthcare Decisions Day. A day to educate and empower you about advance care planning. But what are Advance Directives, and are they really necessary?
Advance Directives are a set of guidelines. These include a Living Will, which allows you to approve or decline certain types of medical care at end-of-life, and a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care, which helps someone you trust to make healthcare decisions for you if you have become unable to make those decisions yourself. This could be because you have a debilitating disease, like advanced dementia, or it could be something like decisions that need to be made while you are temporarily unconscious or in a coma after an accident. You, and any of your loved ones over 18, should have both, and you can get them for free. AARP has a clear and easy set of forms here:
The Franklin VNA & Hospice is holding a free Advance Directives information session Tuesday, April 16, 2019 as part of our celebration of National Healthcare Decisions Day.
Briefly, a Durable Power of Attorney, or DPOA, should be someone you trust, someone who will stand up for your wishes, and someone who is willing to take responsibility for your healthcare decisions. You name them in your Advance Directive, which is then witnessed and signed, making it legal. You can still change it at any time if you need to, and you likely will. The person you choose at 18 will likely not be the same person you choose at 80. Your Advance Directives are the roadmap, for the DPOA you chose, to follow so they can make the right decisions for you, and choose the treatment options you would choose for yourself.
This year, on April 16, take some time to write your Advance Directives, and help someone you love to write them as well.
You have a choice in your homecare provider. Choose local. Choose Franklin VNA & Hospice.
For more information, call Franklin VNA & Hospice at (603) 934-3454 or visit www.FranklinVNA.org