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Advance Directive for Health Care Form - California
A California Advance Directive is a crucial form that allows of-age individuals to have legal control over their medical treatment in the event when they are unable to speak for themselves. When a patient does not have their wishes about the kinds of medical treatment they do or do not want to receive specified, these decisions can be placed in the hands of family members, doctors, or even judges, who may know very little about what the patient prefers. Download a ready-made directive through the link below or make your own form with our customizable template.
The document provides an efficient and flexible format for planning out future health care and gives patients the option of electing a trusted individual or health professional to oversee their care. There is a difference between a California Advance Directive for Health Care and a California Living Will. The former are oral or written instructions about future medical care in case the individual becomes too ill to communicate. The latter is a specific type of directive that takes effect only when a patient is terminally ill.
A California Advance Directive is defined by Section 4700 and 4701 of the California Probate Code on Advance Health Care Directive Forms . The document must be signed by two (2) witnesses or acknowledged before a notary public.
What Is a California Advance Directive?
Advance Directives are legally binding documents that outline an individual's wishes regarding life support, resuscitation and other interventions for both their health care team and family members. The paperwork includes two parts in total - a Living Will and a Medical Power of Attorney.
A Living Will is a legal document that intends to ensure and specify an individual's end-of-life wishes regarding health care and medical treatment in the event of their permanent incapacity. A Medical Power of Attorney - otherwise called a Healthcare Proxy or a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care - is a form that selects an agent to make medical decisions on the behalf of the individual signing the document.
How to Write an Advance Directive in California?
- Decide on whether you want to include a Living Will in your advance health care instructions.
- If you decided to include a Living Will be specific about such things as CPR, breathing machines, antibiotics, kidney dialysis, tube-feeding, and certain surgical procedures that you are willing to authorize.
- Discuss your decisions with your partner or spouse, your doctor, and your attorney.
- Elect a decision-maker - a health care proxy or agent. Choose someone you believe will be able to follow your wishes whatever those may be. This will help ensure that your wishes are carried out correctly and in full.
- Give a copy of the document to your health care proxy and ask for it to be kept in a safe place. Keep the original in an easy-to-find place. Do not lock it in a safe-deposit box or filing cabinet that only you can access.
Download Advance Directive for Health Care Form - California
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