The Importance Of The Living Will

213 Words1 Page
bulb-icon

Recommended: Healthcare policy and law

The living will is the principle right by law in the United States for all citizens of adult age who are competent to control the course of treatment regarding their body. That includes surgery and the surgeon who must have the patient’s consent to operate, and the use of any life-sustaining treatment, the administration of any type of aggressive therapies, such as the kind used for cancer, and other terminal diseases once the patient has gone beyond medical ability to restore the patient to a decent quality of health. This is when the instruction of the patient’s desires in the living will is crucial. It instructs the physicians how to proceed with wishes of the patient, such as not allowing any prolonging of life sustaining treatment. The

Show More
Related

  • Ethical Issues Of Euthanasia

    1581 Words  | 4 Pages

    However it can also make room for medical, legal and ethical dilemmas. Advances in medical technology enable individuals to delay the inevitable fate of death, overcome cancer, diabetes, and various traumatic injuries. Our advances in medical technologies now allow these individuals to do things on their own terms. The “terminally ill” state is described as having an incurable or irreversible condition that has a high probability of causing death within a relatively short time with or without treatment (Guest, p.3, 1998). A wide range of degenerative diseases can fall into either category, ranging from, HIV/AIDS, Alzheimer’s disease and many forms of cancer. This control, however, lays assistance, whether direct or indirect, from a

    Read More

  • Terri Schiavo Interview

    1277 Words  | 3 Pages

    Once I explained exactly what a living will is because some were unaware they were very comfortable with the idea of filling out a living will. The responses that I got all varied to different degrees. My brother stated that he did not yet have a living will but that they are very important to have and everyone should get one. He said that his wishes would be to pretty much “pull the plug in every circumstance”. He absolutely did not want to be put on life support, be artificially supplied with food, or get life sustaining drugs, machines, or other medical procedures. My mother had wishes the same as I would have which is to consider the circumstances and give me a month to evaluate if I have the possibility of making a full recovery. If there is no hope of having a full recovery then I want all life sustaining measures to be stopped because I don’t in any way want to be a burden on

    Read More

  • A Case for Free Will

    2065 Words  | 5 Pages

    “He has finally learned to love big brother” was how George Orwell in his novel 1984 described Winston, conversion to the party are represented by big brother at the end of the novel. It is easy to believe that at this instance, after torturous reeducation that Winston has endured, he has lost free will and no longer be able to freely choose to love big brother but was forced to, against hiss will. Therefore Winston was never free to love big brother, and in fact not free at all after his “reeducation.” But if we are to accept a definition of free will that stipulates that we are able to produce and act on our own volitions we must accept that Winston has retained and has chosen to love big brother out of his own free will.

    Read More

  • Advance Care Directives

    1162 Words  | 3 Pages

    As we get older and delve into the real world, it is important to start thinking about end-of-life care and advance directives. Although it is something no one wants to imagine, there is an absolute necessity for living wills and a power of attorney. Learning about the Patient Self-Determination Act and the different legal basis in where you live is important because it will help people understand why advance care directives are so important. Although there are several barriers in implementing advance care directives, there are also several actions that healthcare professionals can take to overcome these obstacles. These are also important to know about, especially for someone going into the medical field.

    Read More

  • Mental Capacity Act 2005 Essay

    758 Words  | 2 Pages

    Social Attitudes Survey noted that 78% of respondents believe that “the law should require doctors to carry out the instructions of a Living Will” (Park et al, 2007). These decisions become important once patients lose their mental capacity, are unconscious, or unable to communicate” (BMA, 2009). The Mental Capacity Act 2005 defines an “advance decision” as a decision made by a person 18 or over, when he or she has the capacity to do so. The implications of a Living Will, make the case against legalising assisted dying weaker. This is because if a person is legally allowed to set out which treatments they will or will not agree to, and can refuse life sustaining treatments by creating a legal document, then why shouldn’t an individual in extreme pain who is able to make the request at the time be able to ask for assistance in

    Read More

  • Physician Assisted Suicide Essay

    2048 Words  | 5 Pages

    There is great debate in this country and worldwide over whether or not terminally ill patients who are experiencing great suffering should have the right to choose death. A deep divide amongst the American public exists on the issue. It is extremely important to reach an ethical decision on whether or not terminally ill patients have this right to choose death, since many may be needlessly suffering, if an ethical solution exists.

    Read More

  • Patient Assisted Suicide

    1881 Words  | 4 Pages

    One of the greatest dangers facing chronic and terminally ill patients is the grey area regarding PAS. In the Netherlands, there are strict criteria for the practice of PAS. Despite such stringencies, the Council on Ethical and Judicial Affairs (1992) found 28% of the PAS cases in the Netherlands did not meet the criteria. The evidence suggests some of the patient’s lives may have ended prematurely or involuntarily. This problem can be addressed via advance directives. These directives would be written by competent individuals explaining their decision to be aided in dying when they are no longer capable of making medical decisions. These interpretations are largely defined by ones morals, understanding of ethics, individual attitudes, religious and cultural values.

    Read More

  • Ethical Issues

    925 Words  | 2 Pages

    Advance directives can become ethical issues especially when a family attempts to enforce their opinions on healthcare instead of what a patient had requested in a living will. Advance directives, sometimes called a living will, are legal documents that allow an individual to spell out your decisions about end-of-life care ahead of time (MedlinePlus, 2014). A living will address which treatments an individual wants if he or she is dying or permanently unconscious (MedlinePlus, 2014). People impacted by this situations was the patient, the patient’s daughter, and all the patient...

    Read More

  • DR): Advance Directive Or Advance Directive?

    1102 Words  | 3 Pages

    While navigating the abundant and sometimes confusing legal language of advance directives can be time consuming, it would benefit every person to consider their end of life wishes and have some form of written statement available for their doctor and family to understand those wishes. Doing this in advance can prevent emotional anguish, suffering and expensive litigation. In the end, clearly and when possible, written, documentation of a medical directive, a living will, or a chosen health care power of attorney will lessen the burden for the medical professionals and family of a dying or incapacitated person.

    Read More

  • Essay On End Of Life Care Plan

    1361 Words  | 3 Pages

    The care of patients at the end of their live should be as humane and respectful to help them cope with the accompanying prognosis of the end of their lives. The reality of this situation is that all too often, the care a patient receives at the end of their life is quite different and generally not performed well. The healthcare system of the United States does not perform well within the scope of providing the patient with by all means a distress and pain free palliative or hospice care plan. To often patients do not have a specific plan implemented on how they wish to have their end of life care carried out for them. End of life decisions are frequently left to the decision of family member's or physicians who may not know what the patient needs are beforehand or is not acting in the patient's best wishes. This places the unenviable task of choosing care for the patient instead of the patient having a carefully written out plan on how to carry out their final days. A strategy that can improve the rate of care that patients receive and improve the healthcare system in general would be to have the patient create a end of life care plan with their primary care physician one to two years prior to when the physician feels that the patient is near the end of their life. This would put the decision making power on the patient and it would improve the quality of care the patient receives when they are at the end of their life. By developing a specific care plan, the patient would be in control of their wishes on how they would like their care to be handled when the time of death nears. We can identify strengths and weakness with this strategy and implement changes to the strategy to improve the overall system of care with...

    Read More

  • Preparing For Our Deaths

    904 Words  | 2 Pages

    It is hard to let someone that is close to us die, but we need to look beyond the fact that you will miss them. You need to think about what is best for the patient and if they are terminal; prolonging their life is not the best thing. It is important to prepare for our own death and make our wishes known. A living will is one way of doing that. A living will is a document explains to your doctor what types of treatment you want if you become terminally ill. A living will only works when you are terminal, it does not come into effect if you are in an accident and need emergency treatment. Some people may feel that a living will is not for them, when in fact everyone should have a living will. Most people assume that a living will means that they are refusing treatment, which is not true. A living will just explains your wishes.

    Read More

  • consent to death

    3401 Words  | 7 Pages

    In most modern mainstream religions, life is viewed as intrinsically good and worth preserving. We as doctors, come from many different faiths and religion, but we all follow one creed, one oath, the Hippocratic oath. Granted, over the years there have been many variants, but all contain the same underlying principle, that life is foundationally good. This is due to the fact that all things come from life, even death. At the same time, we as doctors must never forget that many of our patients are autonomous, and ultimately free. Physicians must rely on the patient, just as the patient often relies on the physician. The patient is the only one who knows what it is that they themselves what. In the United States, we take our freedom incredibly seriously, and we guard it as we would our most valuable possessions. We as doctors must walk a fine gray line between patient rights and our role as doctors. Nowhere is this more apparent then when dealing with patient assisted suicide, and more commonly, end of life care. Below is this committee's draft policy, which we feel our hospital should adopt.

    Read More

  • On Free Choice of the Will

    1445 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Please tell me: isn’t God the cause of evil?” (Augustine, 1). With this question to Augustine of Hippo, Evodius begins a philosophical inquiry into nature of evil. Augustine, recently baptized by Saint Ambrose in Milan, began writing his treatise On Free Choice of the Will in 387 C.E. This work laid down the foundation for the Christian doctrine regarding the will’s role in sinning and salvation. In it, Augustine and his interlocutor investigate God’s existence and his role in creating evil. They attempt not only to understand what evil is, and the possibility of doing evil, but also to ascertain why God would let humans cause evil. Central to the premise of this entire dialogue is the concept of God, as relates to Christianity; what is God, and what traits separate Him from humans? According to Christianity, God is the creator of all things, and God is good; he is omnipotent, transcendent, all-knowing, and atemporal- not subject to change over time- a concept important to the understanding of the differences between this world and the higher, spiritual realm He presides over. God’s being is eidos, the essence which forms the basis of humans. With God defined, the core problem being investigated by Augustine and Evodius becomes clear. Augustine states the key issue that must be reconciled in his inquiry; “we believe that everything that exists comes from the one God, and yet we believe that God is not the cause of sins. What is troubling is that if you admit that sins come from… God, pretty soon you’ll be tracing those sins back to God” (Augustine, 3).

    Read More

  • Analysis Of What Really Matters At The End Of Life

    735 Words  | 2 Pages

    In BJ Millers TedTalk, “What Really Matters at the End of Life?” BJ Miller discusses on how we think on death and honor life. He speaks to the audience about how for the most people the scariest thing about death is not death itself, it is actually dying or suffering. The targeted audience is everyone in the world, because eventually everyone is going to die and everyone thinks about death. BJ 3 has big points in the article saying, Distinction between necessary and unnecessary suffering. Also by having a little ritual that helps with this shift in perspective. Another point is to lift and set our sights on well-being. We need to lift our sights, to set our sights on well-being, so that life and health and healthcare can become about making life more wonderful, rather than just less horrible.

    Read More

  • Essay On Human Nature And Free Will

    905 Words  | 2 Pages

    Human nature is about free will, and using one’s free will for good acts. We know free will exists because living things are being changed day after day. Any act, from walking across a room to deciding to eat a meal, is because of free will. We are given free will and with that, the ability to create our own, unique path in life. Free will provides human beings with freedom, judgement, and responsibility. Every human being is born with the capability to live a good, just life. However it is just as possible to live an immoral life led by bad choices. This notion of endless options in life is made possible by God’s gift of free will. No two human lives will ever be the same, because no two people will ever have the exact same experiences their entire lives. Every human being is shaped by experience, which comes from our actions, which are results of free will.

    Read More

More about The Importance Of The Living Will

Open Document