What is an advance directive?

An advance directive is a legal form that lets you have a say about how you want to be cared for if you cannot speak for yourself. It lets you name a trusted medical decision maker and write down your wishes for medical care.

To learn more, please view the video called “About Advance Directive Forms” on the PREPARE for THEIR Care homepage.

Why should I complete an advance directive?

Accidents happen unexpectedly at any age. If you are unable to speak, an advance directive will guide your doctor on your medical wishes and the kind of care that you would want. It will also help your doctor know who to turn to if any medical decisions need to be made for you.

Can I change my mind about my medical wishes?

You can always change your mind about your medical wishes at any time. This is your choice. If you create a PREPARE for YOUR Care account, the website will save your answers and will make it easy for you to change and update your wishes over time. If you do not create an account, you may need to start the PREPARE for YOUR Care questions over from scratch.

What do I do if I change my mind about my medical wishes?

If you change your mind about your wishes, and you have completed a PREPARE advance directive, update this form by filling out a new form or log into PREPARE and update your advance directive form.

Give the new form to your medical decision maker and medical providers. Destroy old forms.

What should I do with this advance directive once I fill it out?

We recommend giving a copy to your family, friends, and your medical providers. It is important to make sure your medical providers put this into your medical record. However, different hospitals or clinics do not share medical records. That is why it is so important for you to share your advance directives with as many people as possible, including all the medical providers you see. Some people keep this information on their phone. For your family and friends, you can take pictures of each page of your advance directive or even create a video that goes over each page and share in a text message or email.

How do I make the PREPARE Advance Directive legal?

You will have to sign and date the form. Then, you will need signatures from witnesses, a notary public, both or neither. Every US state has its own laws for witnesses and signatures. Pages 13-15 of the PREPARE Advance Directive provides your state’s specific rules about how to make the form legal.

Who can be a witness for my advance directive? What are they responsible for?

Every US state has its own laws about witnesses. Witnesses are people who may need to sign the form saying that it really was you who filled out and signed the advance directive. Page 13-14 of the PREPARE Advance Directive will tell you about the rules for witnesses in your state.

Does this advance directive form really count?

Yes. Doctors take these forms very seriously. The important part is for the person to talk to their family, friends, and medical providers about their wishes and give them a copy of the form or let them know where it is stored. This way, others can advocate for them if they are unable to speak for themselves. It is also important to bring the advance directive to medical providers so they can put a copy into the person’s medical record.

What is the difference between an advance directive, living will, or POLST form?

To learn more about the different types of forms, watch the video called “About Advance Directive Forms” on the PREPARE for THEIR Care homepage. This video goes over all the different types of forms and how they are different.

Does the PREPARE Easy-to-read Advance Directive cover both Durable Power of Attorney Forms and Living Will Forms?

This form meets the legal requirements for both Durable Power of Attorney and Living Will documents for all 50 US state and the District of Columbia. You can choose to fill out only Part 1 (to name a medical decision maker or durable power of attorney) or Part 2 (the living will section about medical wishes). This is your choice.

Can I write down what I would want if I were to get dementia?

This form is to act as a general guide because it is impossible to know about all the medical situations and treatments you may need in the future. Some people have had experiences themselves, with friends, or with family, or have religious beliefs that help them know they would or would not want certain treatment. If you feel strongly about a particular treatment, you can write this information on page 10 of the easy-to-read advance directive. (If you are using the PREPARE Question Guide, you can write this on page 7.) The advance directive gives you space to write all the things that may be important to you about your medical care.

Note: If you want to add other wishes or attach other forms, you can place them right after page 10 of the easy-to-read advance directive. These other forms can be a part of our legal easy-to-read advance directives because all of your wishes are important.

Can I write down my specific wishes about medical treatments like blood transfusions or dialysis?

Yes. This form is to act as a general guide because it is impossible to know about all the medical situations and treatments you may need in the future, such as dementia, dialysis, blood transfusions, or other treatments. Some people may have had their own experiences with friends or with family, or have religious beliefs that help them know that they would or would not want certain treatments in the case of serious illness. If you feel strongly about a particular treatment, such as dialysis or blood transfusions or care if you were to get dementia, you can write this information on page 12 of the PREPARE Advance Directive. The advance directive gives you space to write all the things that may be important to you about your medical care. Note: If you want to add other wishes or attach other forms, you can place them right after page 12 of the easy-to-read advance directive before you sign the form. You can even hand write your wishes on a piece of paper. These other forms and wishes can be a part of the legal easy-to-read advance directives because all of your wishes are important.

Does my PREPARE Advance Directive work in other states?

Every US state has its own advance directive laws. Some states accept other states’ advance directives, but a few of them do not. In these cases, it is up to the doctor to accept an out-of-state form. If you live or visit several states, there is a BIG benefit of filling out the form on the PREPARE website. If you sign up and create an account, PREPARE can save your answers on a very safe and secure site (server). Then you can easily create an advance directive for whatever state you would like. Each form would still need to be witnesses and signed to be legal.

What is a notary public and do I need one to sign my advance directive?

A notary has special training to make forms legal. They can sign and put their stamp on the form to say that it really was you who signed filled out and signed the advance directive. Notaries often charge a small fee for a signature and may take fingerprints. See page 13 of the PREPARE Advance Directive to see if your state requires a notary public to sign your form.

I have heard that some states have right to die laws. Can I write this on my advance directive?

Every US state has its own laws about this and this request is different from an advance directive. Please talk to your doctor in your state about this. If you feel strongly about this issue, you can write your wishes on Page 12 of the easy-to-read advance directive. It is always helpful for your loved ones and medical providers to know the health situations that would be considered not good quality of life to you. But, right to die laws require specific forms and procedures that are very specific for that request. You would have to ask your doctor about further information in your state.

Is an advance directive the same thing as a POLST form?

There are big differences between advance directives and POLST forms.

• An advance directive is a form that YOU fill out about your medical decision makers and your medical wishes. An advance directive can be completed by an adult at any age or stage in health.

• The POLST form is a medical ORDER that ONLY a doctor or medical provider fills out. That form is only about life sustaining treatment, such as CPR or going to the hospital, and has checkboxes. That form does not allow you to name a decision maker. The POLST form is meant for very sick people near the end of their life.

• The National POLST Paradigm website is a good place to learn more about POLST.

This video is also a great way to learn about POLST.

To learn more about the different types of forms you can watch the video called “About Advance Directive Forms” on the PREPARE for THEIR Care homepage.