The advance directive

Abstract

Advance directives are an indispensable and essential part of medical practice today. They give the power to a patient to make an informed choice, within the law of the country, about him or her when mentally incapacitated, dying or in palliative care. A patient may designate a trusted person or family doctor to be his or her health care representative and take decisions on his or her behalf. In this case the advance directive is a written statement addressing who this 'power of attorney for health care' is. The power of attorney, that is, the person acting on the patient's behalf, obviates the problem that living wills are not legally binding and therefore may be challenged by relatives and the medical team. The word of the person designated by the patient to act on his or her behalf is almost as binding as the word of the patient.