Advance Health Care Directives and Living Wills for Norco Residents

Separate your instructions from the decision-maker’s role

A directive can address both what you want and who may make health-care decisions for you. Your written instructions communicate your preferences; the person you identify is the decision-maker. Thinking about those responsibilities separately can help you decide what the document should say and whom to name.

For example, you might want the document to express preferences about care while also naming someone who can make health-care decisions. That example is a planning prompt, not a recommendation about particular treatment. Consider whether the person you have in mind understands the role you intend them to have and can communicate with the people involved in your care.

• What preferences do you want the document to communicate?
• Who do you want identified to make health-care decisions?
• What would you want that person to understand about your preferences?

Keep health-care authority distinct from financial authority

A health-care directive and a financial power of attorney address different responsibilities. The directive concerns health-care wishes and health-care decisions; a financial power of attorney serves a financial role. Naming someone in a health-care directive does not, by itself, make that person responsible for financial decisions.

If you want someone to handle financial matters as well, consider that need separately when organizing your planning documents. A useful question to discuss is which kinds of decisions you want each document to address. Avoid relying on one document to communicate authority for a different purpose.

Make the document useful to the people who may need it

A written preference can help communicate your wishes only if the relevant people can find and refer to it. As a practical preparation step, consider who should know where your directive is kept and how they could access it when needed. You can also prepare a short list of questions or preferences to discuss as you organize the document.

Preparing and keeping the document accessible is separate from registering information about an executed directive. Registration is a distinct step; it does not replace the practical task of considering how the people involved will locate the document.

• Think about who may need access to the directive.
• Decide how you will let those people know where it is kept.
• Keep your discussion focused on communicating preferences and identifying the intended decision-maker.

Choose a next step based on what remains unclear

Before discussing a directive, note whether your main question is how to express preferences, whom to identify as a health-care decision-maker, or how to keep the document accessible. If you also have questions about financial decision-making, identify those separately so the different roles are not confused.

Codi M. Dada Law Office P.C. provides virtual services throughout California from its one in-person office in Novato. A focused conversation about your intended roles and the preferences you want to communicate can help you identify the planning questions you need to address.