Advance Health Care Directives and Living Wills for Petaluma Residents

Separate treatment instructions from choosing a decision-maker

An advance health care directive can do two different jobs: express your health-care wishes and identify someone to make health-care decisions. Those functions are related, but they are not interchangeable. Written instructions communicate your preferences; identifying a decision-maker addresses who may act for you.

This page focuses on preparing to discuss treatment preferences and written instructions. If you are still deciding who should make health-care decisions, treat that as a separate conversation. You do not need to resolve the two questions in the same way or at the same time.

Collect your thoughts before a remote consultation

A useful starting point is to write down what you want your instructions to communicate, in your own words. Note the questions or situations you want to discuss and any preferences you already feel clear about. If you are uncertain, record the uncertainty rather than trying to turn it into a final instruction before the meeting.

You can also gather any existing health-care directive or related planning documents you want to discuss, along with notes about where the documents are kept and who can access them. This is preparation for a conversation, not a legal checklist or a medical recommendation. The purpose is to make it easier to explain your priorities and identify what remains undecided.

• Write down the preferences you want to communicate and the questions you want answered.
• Note whether you already have a directive or other document you want to review.
• Consider how the relevant document could be found by people who may need it.

Keep health-care wishes distinct from financial authority

A financial power of attorney serves a different role: it concerns financial decisions, not health-care decisions. Having one does not, by itself, communicate health-care treatment preferences. When preparing for the consultation, identify whether your questions concern health care, finances, or both so the documents and discussion are not mistaken for one another.

This distinction matters in practical terms. A person looking for your health-care wishes may need the relevant health-care document; a financial power of attorney addresses a different subject. If you have both, make a note of where each is kept rather than assuming one document covers both roles.

Plan for access as well as preparation

Preparing a directive and making information about an executed directive available are separate tasks. Consider who should know where the document is kept and how they could locate it when needed. A document that records your preferences may be less useful in practice if the people who need to refer to it cannot find it.

Registration is also distinct from preparing and keeping the relevant documents accessible. If you have questions about registering information about an executed directive, raise that separately from questions about what your written instructions should say. Do not treat registration as a substitute for thinking about document access.

Discuss your preferences with the firm

Codi M. Dada Law Office P.C. has one in-person office in Novato and provides virtual services throughout California, including for Petaluma residents. For a remote consultation, bring your notes, questions, and any existing directive you want to discuss. You can use the conversation to clarify what you want written instructions to communicate and how those instructions are distinct from selecting a health-care decision-maker.