Living Wills

Five Wishes Ensures You Get the Care You Want

If you've ever had to make critical health care decisions about a loved one, or just wondered how best to comfort a close friend or relative who was seriously ill, you probably had to face the unsettling questions: Would she have wanted to be kept on life support? He seems to be in so much pain--what would be of comfort to him?

Living wills are designed to help others know how you wish to be treated when you are medically unable to speak for yourself. They can help ease a difficult situation by helping those around you know how best to manage your care.

One of the best is Five Wishes, a document developed by experts in end-of-life care, in consultation with the American Bar Association's Commission on the Legal Problems of the Elderly.

Five Wishes is popular because it is short, easy-to-use, and addresses emotional as well as medical issues. Especially helpful is the fact that each wish contains a number of simply written choices, which you can leave or cross out to indicate your desires.

The first two of the Five Wishes relate to your medical care. They are:

• The person I want to make care decisions for me when I can't. This section allows you to name your health care agent as well as indicate specific decisions you would or would not allow that person to make. (Examples: make decisions on tests, medicine, or surgery, or authorize administration of medication to help with pain.)
• My wish for the kind of medical treatment I want or don't want. The information you provide in this section will help your caregiver know your views on under what circumstances you do or do not want life-support treatments to be used.

The last three wishes deal with emotional and spiritual needs. They help family members and friends understand your wishes regarding ways to be comfortable, how you want to be treated, and things you want your loved ones to know.

The Five Wishes living will meets legal requirements in 35 states. (For a list of states, go to www.agingwithdignity.org or call 850-681-2010.) Copies are $5 each from Aging with Dignity, P.O. Box 1661, Tallahassee, FL 32302-1661.