Are Living Wills Beneficial?

Objectives

• A living will, also known as a health care declaration or directive, is a legal document that accomplishes two objectives. First, a living will allows you to make decisions about medical treatment and end-of-life care, effectively becoming your voice in the event you are not in a position to speak. Second, a living will can remove much of the pressure your loved ones face if your inability to communicate results in their having to base decisions regarding your care and treatment on guesswork.
  
  

Inclusions

• Although individual state statutes vary in what a living will may or may not contain, Medline Plus, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine and National Institutes of Health, states that, in most cases, living wills are quite specific. Instructions you typically see in a living will include those relating to resuscitation, tube feeding, artificial breathing, diagnostic tests and blood transfusions.
  
  

Benefits

• Although you must decide for yourself whether a living will is beneficial, it may help to consider some of its benefits. On the plus side, a living will can bring you peace of mind. This is especially true if you have strong opinions relating to medical care you do not wish to receive. In addition, a living will can resolve family conflicts before they develop if your loved ones have differing opinions on treatment and care options.
  
  

Disadvantages

• On the negative side, although a living will is a legal document, it is subject to interpretation. A common problem, according to the University of Washington School of Medicine, is the ambiguous language many living wills contain. Especially troublesome are phrases such as "extraordinary measures" and "unnaturally prolonging life." Another disadvantage is that you cannot create a document that covers every possible situation or scenario. Finally, if your wishes change and you fail to update your living will, the approach taken toward your medical situation may become the opposite of what you desire.
  
  

Considerations

• You can increase the beneficial aspects of a living will by involving your doctor and at least one family member in the decision-making process. Make sure both understand your desires, no matter how ambiguous the document's language may read, and consider appointing the family member you include as your medical power-of-attorney (POA). Designating a medical POA will remove family conflict and increase the likelihood your wishes will prevail. If you do make the decision to create a living will, take care to review and revise it to make sure it is and remains consistent with your end-of-life wishes.