As a competent adult you have the right to refuse any medical or surgical treatment for yourself for any reason.  The best way for you to be in control of your medical treatment is to record your preferences in advance.  You can make legally valid decisions about future medical treatment through an Advance Directive.  In completing an Advance Directive, you can do two things:

• Legally appoint someone as your Personal Agent for Health Care to make healthcare decisions for you when you cannot speak for yourself, and/or
• Formally state your wishes for the medical treatments you do or do not want to receive.

The Advance Directive combines two documents that you may be familiar with:  the Living Will and the Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care.  At Henry Medical Center, the Five Wishes document is used to help you express how you want to be treated if a serious illness makes you unable to speak for yourself.

The Five Wishes is unique among all other living will and health agent forms because it looks to all of a persons needs:  medical, personal, emotional and spiritual.

Five Wishes lets your family and doctor know:

1. Which person you want to make health care decisions for you when you can’t make them.
2. The kind of medical treatment you want or don’t want.
3. How comfortable you want to be.
4. How you want people to treat you.
5. What you want your loved ones to know.

Things You Should Know About an Advance Directive

• An Advance Directive comes into effect when, and only when you are no longer able to make decisions for yourself.
• An Advance Directive covers only healthcare decisions.  It has no effect over your financial affairs.
• If you change your mind, an Advance Directive can be easily amended or canceled.  However, you must make your changes known to anyone who has a copy of your document.
• A lawyer is not needed to draw up an Advance Directive although you may decide that talking with a lawyer is desirable.
• If you have an emergency and your Advance Directive is not readily available, life-sustaining treatments may be started.  Treatment can be stopped if it is discovered that is not what you want.
• A hospital, nursing facility, home health company or hospice program cannot refuse to admit you because you do not have an Advance Directive or any other healthcare directive.
• Completing an Advance Directive will have no effect on your ability to obtain health or life insurance.  You cannot be required to have any form of healthcare directive in order to obtain health insurance.
• You or your Personal Agent for Health Care are responsible for notifying your doctor and other healthcare providers that you have an Advance Directive.

If you have made your wishes known, it is our policy to honor a patient’s Advance Directive or any other health care directive that meets the requirements of Georgia law.

We recognize and respect the right of patients to accept or reject offered medical or surgical treatment, to the extent permitted by law. 

We can provide you with an Advance Directive form and additional information on discussing and planning for your final health care.

For further information on Advance Directives, please contact the following:

Pastoral Care (678) 604-1054
Nursing Service (678) 604-1020
Quality Management (678) 604-1056

The Chaplain of the hospital is available to help you understand and complete the document or to speak to your religious or civic group. 

For More information about the Five Wishes program, please visit their website.

                                          www.agingwithdignity.org

or visit
The Department of Human Services Aging Division
for more information on living wills.