One of the forms that you can use when you’re doing your estate planning is known as a healthcare power of attorney. By using this document, you are potentially surrendering your own rights to make medical decisions. You’re giving someone else this ability.
This doesn’t mean they can do it at the moment that you draft the form. The idea is simply that you could become incapacitated in the future, and then you want to know that this individual is there for you. They can make the decisions and work with your medical team. That is the first reason that you should use a power of attorney, but what are some others?
You can give your family peace of mind
These documents are often very helpful for family members. They may worry about making medical decisions like deciding when to keep someone on life support. By using a power of attorney, you choose the person who makes that decision in advance and everyone else doesn’t have to worry about it.
They can react to changing situations
Another advantage is that medical situations often change quickly. The agent that you choose can react to that and work with your doctors to seek the best care. Other options are simply not this dynamic. For example, some people will create an advance directive that just tells doctors what type of treatment they do not want. This is helpful in some situations, but an unexpected event may arise that means you would want that treatment. Your agent can decide what would be best at the moment.
It is very important to get this document set up in advance, so be sure you know what steps to take.