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Your Life Your Choices
Planningfor FutureMedicalDecisions:How toPrepare aPersonalizedLiving Will
1
Your Life Your Choices
Authored by Robert Pearlman, MD MPH Helene Starks, MPH Kevin Cain, PhD William Cole, PhD David Rosengren, PhD Donald Patrick, PhD MSPH Design & Layout by Brems Eastman & Partners Information Design Seattle
Planning for Future Medical Decisions: How to Prepare a Personalized Living Will
1
"What should we do for Dad?"
Your Life, Your Choices
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Dad hadbeen in declining health for months. Then he fellasleep at the wheel and was in a bad car accident.Three weeks later he was still in a coma. A breathingmachine pumped air into his lungs because he couldnot breathe on his own. The doctors thought hischances of coming out of the coma were slim. Theytalked with Mom and me about turning off thebreathing machine and allowing Dad to die naturally.I felt terrible. I didn't think Dad would want to bekept alive like this. But I knew Mom would feel guiltyfor the rest of her life if we told the doctors to "pullthe plug" while there was still even the slightest hope.We weren’t sure what we should do because Dadnever told us what he would have wanted. I reallywish we'd talked about this before."
Your Life, Your Choices
Info and Rating
Sections
« prev | next »- Why do you need to think now about future health care decisions?
- Do you have any strongly-held beliefs that should guide your care?
- If you couldn’t speak for yourself, what would you want done for you?
- Who will speak for me if I can't speak for myself?
- Common questions about choosing a spokesperson
- What else can I do to make my wishes known?
- Common questions about advance directives
- Coma
- Stroke
- Terminal illness
- Telling others what you want
- Writing it down
- What’s Next?
- Who should speak for me?
- What makes your life worth living?
- Personal and spiritual beliefs
- Weighing pros and cons of treatment for different chances of recovery
- Hope for recovery
- How would you like to spend your last days?
- Organ donation and autopsy
- Burial arrangements
- Funeral or memorial services
- Dementia
- Kidney Dialysis
- CPR— Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation
- Mechanical Ventilators (Breathing machines)
- Current Health
- Permanent Coma
- Severe Dementia
- Severe Stroke
- Terminal Illness
- A future situation of concern
- Asking someone to be your spokesperson
- Who else should you talk to?
- What if you don’t have close family or friends?
- Nine important issues to discuss
- Talking to your health care providers
- Other Resources
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