Advance Directives

You have the right to say yes or no to treatments recommended by your doctor. If you want to control decisions about your health care even if you become unable to express them yourself, you need an “Advance Directive.” North Carolina has several ways for you to make a formal advance directive. These options include a Living Will, a Healthcare Power of Attorney, and an Instruction for Mental Health Treatment.

A living will is a legal document that tells others that you want to die a natural death if you are terminally ill, incurably sick, or in a persistent vegetative state from which you will not recover. In a living will, you can direct your doctor not to use heroic treatments or extraordinary measures that would delay your death, such as breathing machines (respirators/ventilators), or stopping such treatments if they have been started. You can also direct your doctor not to begin or stop giving you food and water through a tube (artificial nutrition or hydration).

A healthcare power of attorney is given to a person you name to make medical decisions for you if you later become unable to decide yourself. This person is called your “healthcare agent.” In a legal document you will name the agent of your choice, and you can also express what medical treatments you would not want. You healthcare agent then knows what choices you would make.

An advance instruction for mental health treatment is a legal document that tells doctors and healthcare providers what mental health treatments you would want and what treatments you
would not want, if you later become unable to decide yourself. You may also choose someone to make these decisions for you when you are unable to make them.

Our Patient and Family Services staff can offer additional information on advance directives. You can contact Patient and Family Services at extension 4231.