Harver Health Insurance Counter Fraud Group: Advance directi

1. Advance directives clarify choices

2. Advance directives clarify choices, guide family Pulmonologist Dr. Rick Blevins often sees patients and families grappling with a decision he says should have been made long before. Blevins treats many patients in the intensive care unit who won't survive. If they do not have advance directives, their families are left to make hard decisions that they may not have answers to.

3. "It's a subject that comes up and (in the ICU) is the worst possible time for conversations to be initiated," Blevins said. Many times, the ICU patient is unable to make decisions for himself, so it falls on the family, Blevins said. The role of the family in that situation is to make the decision the patient would make, Blevins explained. But families don't always know or don't agree.

4. Advance directives, such as living wills, provide instruction to families and especially health care providers on how the patient wants to be treated in the event of incapacity. Besides the living will, other common forms people complete are powers of attorney for health care that gives another person the authority to make health care decisions in the event of incapacity of the patient, and a form called Five Wishes, which provides not only instructions on medical care but also emotional care.

5. Blevins said it can be difficult not only for families to have discussions about advance directives, but these conversations may not be happening in the doctor's office either. Doctors are encouraged to talk to their patients about their health care wishes, but time constraints might prevent that, he said. Continue reading… Visit our websites: http://hhicfg.com/ http://hhicfg.com/blog/