Advance Directives: Exploring the American Maze

After working with a local hospice for almost six years (and a book about dying for four and a half, and a blog about it for two) I still…still…haven’t completed my own advance directive.  I’ve been procrastinating on this puppy for over eleven years now.  Which is a record.  Even for me.  

So, why?  I finally asked myself.  What’s the hold up?  And when I finally looked past all the chaos and screaming inside the answer was ridiculously simple.

Um…I guess I don’t know how.

So I’m now looking into it and these are the posts that chronicle my little journey of exploration.  And if they can help anybody else?  Well, that’s just double dandy.

Without further ado I give you: What I’ve learned so far about how to do an advance directive in America in 2012.

Part I: February Is Hereby Declared Advance Directive Month. Join Us!

Confession: I haven’t done my advance directive yet.  I’m embarrassed to admit it, but there it is.  In spite of my harping and spouting I haven’t walked my own talk.  (Not entirely sure why but probably because this shit is not only scary, it’s confusing.)

Part II: What Is An Advance Directive? (Or Why I’ve Been So Confused.)

IN SPIRIT, an advance directive is a way of letting everyone know what kind of medical treatment you do and don’t want if you aren’t able to tell them yourself.

IN PRACTICE, an advance directive is a set of actual, legal forms to fill out and this is where things start to get very confusing.

Part III: Advance Directives: Forms and Where to Find Them

In this post I plan to go over some of the different kinds of advance directive forms that are out there, a few different options for filing them, and some of the pros and cons of each.

Part IV: Advance Directives: Will They Be There When We Need ‘Em?

In the last post I researched some of the advance directive forms we can choose from.  The next step is figuring out the ideal way to get our completed forms into the hands of those who will need them.  There are a few ways to do this:

Red Flag: Could Doctors Bypass Our Medical Proxies With Electronic Access To Advance Directives?

I was just reading an article titled Handful of states promise physicians online access to advance directives  in Amednews.com, an online news source published by the American Medical Association, when I came across the following disturbing passage:

Part V: Advance Directives: Best To Wish Carefully With A Genie

After eleven years of procrastination, our self-declared Advance Directives Month has arrived and the hubster and I are finally tackling the forms. It’s going a lot better than we expected.  A LOT.  Like finally-easing-that-horrible-fear better.  Here are a few things we’ve learned so far.

Part VI: Advance Directives: Mine

In this post I wanted to share a smattering of specific thoughts and choices coming up for me as I fill out my own advance directive.  I wanted to do this just in case 1) someone might benefit from an example, and 2) anyone reading this may somehow, someday be involved in my care.

Part VII: Advance Directives: Ours

I was just reading an article titled Handful of states promise physicians online access to advance directives  in Amednews.com, an online news source published by the American Medical Association, when I came across the following disturbing passage:

Part VIII: Advance Directives: Dying Inside Our Big, Hairy Healthcare System

Turns out there’s a huge, third party squatting in the room with us, as we wade through our advance directives.  It’s our healthcare system.  We didn’t realize until now what a disproportionate influence it wields on our choices about dying and I’m struggling with some real sadness about it.Out Of Town And Back Again (With Advance Directives In Tow)

Part IX:  Out Of Town And Back Again (With Advance Directives In Tow)

Everything suddenly got very final and real, and I kept hearing a heavy door swing shut with a key turning in the lock.  At first I struggled with the feeling that, by signing the thing, I was somehow giving up all my rights and instinctively, I started backing away and questioning the wisdom of the whole project.  I was surprised at how powerful…how primal…the wave of fear was.

Unthinkable? No, Dying Is Perfectly Thinkable.

The Los Angeles Times posted an excellent article by Steve Lopez last month discussing the urgent need we all have to not only discuss our wishes with those who are likely to make them, but codify those wishes in written and legal form.  For anyone who’s been thinking about doing so but is unsure how to proceed, please take a look.

Quick Note: Another Great Resource for Advance Directives

Turns out something like a National Advance Directive Month already exists.  Only it’s a day not a month, and it’s called National Healthcare Decision Day.  You can find out more about it here.