Who will follow your wishes for your healthcare decisions if you are incapacitated and unable to make the decisions for yourself? Hopefully you designated that person on a Patient Advocate form. 

This month we are focusing on what health legal documents you need before you go to the hospital. If you missed the introduction to this series, you can find it here: The Health Legal Documents You Need Before You Go to the Hospital.

This document was very important for my mother when she was taken by ambulance to the hospital after a stroke on Labor Day evening. She and my father happily walked the Mackinac Bridge that day as they did every Labor Day for 25 years.

As you can see from this picture which was taken right after my parent’s finished their bridge walk, my mother was a vibrant, energetic 77-year-old retired nurse who felt very strongly that if she was not able to live a full life, she was comfortable with passing away. She didn’t want any extraordinary measures taken, such as major surgeries, ventilators, feeding tubes, and so on. Because she had made her wishes very clear in her Patient Advocate form there was no question among me and my five brothers and sisters as to what we should tell the doctors.

We were lucky that my mom was clear about her wishes. Many families do not have this document so the family argues about what should be done while their loved one lingers in the hospital.

It is also important to know that doctors differ in their views of end of life. Some doctors and hospitals insist that everything be done that can be done. They are concerned about being sued for malpractice or they have their own religious views.

If you don’t want the hospital, doctor, or a well-intentioned loved one making choices for your healthcare that you don’t agree with, spell out your wishes clearly in a Patient Advocate form.

The Patient Advocate form has many names, so don’t be confused if you hear these terms:  

1. Medical Durable Power of Attorney
2. Advanced Directive
3. Living Will
4. Do Not Resuscitate order

All of these terms basically involve the same subject: What are your wishes for your medical care if you can’t make the decisions for yourself?

If you don’t already have a Patient Advocate form in place, speak with your hospital or attorney.

In my upcoming blog posts, I’ll discuss other legal medical documents you need. STAY TUNED!

Have you ever had problems getting the hospital to allow you or your loved one to follow your wishes? If so, I’d love to hear from you!

To learn more about your stay in a hospital, subscribe to MyHealthSpin.com and receive a FREE copy of my ebook Easy Healthcare: Your Hospital Stay. CLICK HERE FOR FREE DOWNLOAD

With MyHealthspin, You Spin Your Healthcare Your Way!

The post Patient Advocate Form: What it is and why you need one appeared first on MyHealthSpin.

Many people go to the hospital completely unprepared. My father went to the hospital many times and we never thought he wouldn’t be coming home. But one time, he didn’t. Thank goodness we had all the documents we needed when that time came.

Even if you are being admitted to the hospital for a routine procedure, you should always have health legal documents in place in case something unexpected happens.  

What health legal documents should you have?

1. Patient Advocate form
   Who will you want to make medical decisions for you if you can’t?  This is also called an advanced directive, living will or medical durable power of attorney.
2. Power of Attorney
   The person who can do anything you can do legally, such as access your bank account or move your investments
3. DNR
   A “Do Not Resuscitate” order, if you wish the hospital personnel not provide life saving measures
4. Letter of Direction
   A document that tells your family what to do if you are incapacitated or die

It may seem silly to be thinking about these serious issues when you may only be going into the hospital for a minor matter or routine procedure. But the last thing you want is for your family to be left with the decisions about your care when they don’t know what you wanted done.

If you don’t already have these documents in place, speak with your hospital or attorney. 

In my upcoming blog posts, I’ll discuss these documents in more detail. STAY TUNED!

Have you ever had problems getting the hospital to allow you or your loved one to follow your wishes? If so, I’d love to hear from you!

To learn more about your stay in a hospital, subscribe to MyHealthSpin.com and receive a FREE copy of my ebook Easy Healthcare: Your Hospital Stay. CLICK HERE FOR FREE DOWNLOAD

With MyHealthspin, You Spin Your Healthcare Your Way!

The post The Health Legal Documents You Need Before You Go to the Hospital appeared first on MyHealthSpin.

Welcome to 2015!  As we start the New Year, many people are planning for the year to come–making resolutions, setting goals.

An important part of any year is making sure you have what you need for your healthcare.  You never want to wait until you have a medical crisis to gather what you need.

Where to start:

1. Medical Life List:  The medical life list is a document that contains all the important information you will need if you go to the doctor or have a health crisis.  You can download a Medical Life List for free by signing up to receive our blog posts via your email in-box.  CLICK HERE
2. Durable Power of Healthcare: A durable power of healthcare details who will handle your healthcare decisions if you are unable to do so yourself.  It also specifies your wishes for care such as life support, feeding tubes, etc.  Any estate planning attorney can help you with this.
3. Primary Care Physician:  A primary care physician such as an internist or family practice doctor  will be essential in guiding you through your healthcare needs in the upcoming year.  Some insurance plans require an authorization from a primary care doctor to see a specialist.  A good primary care doctor can help you decide how to be proactive in keeping healthy and what to do when you are not.  A primary care physician can help you avoid unnecessary treatment and unnecessary costs.

Planning ahead for your healthcare needs can be one of the most important things you will do this year for you and your family.  Whether you have small children or are taking care of a sick loved one or a senior, planning ahead makes all the difference.

If you want to know more, check out our Easy Healthcare ebooks.  Easy Healthcare:  Before You Get Sick provides a quick and simple guide.

We hope this post helps you Spin Your Healthcare Your Way!

The post 3 Things to Start Your Healthcare off Right in 2015 appeared first on MyHealthSpin.

The holidays are filled with friends, shopping, and being together with family you only get to see this time of year.  And while your visit with parents and siblings should be about catching up, it’s also a good time to check in with your family about important healthcare topics.  These conversations are often difficult but necessary.  

Do all the members of your family have a Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare?  MyHealthSpin’s Easy Healthcare:  Your Hospital Stay provides easy and specific steps to complete before being admitted to a hospital.

A durable power of attorney for healthcare or patient advocate designation, is a legal document in which you name the person who will make medical decisions for you if you can’t yourself.  This document is often included in your will or trust. That person, called a patient advocate, will only be able to make decisions for you in the event that you can’t communicate yourself. Your patient advocate can only make medical decisions. He or she won’t be able to make  decisions about your finances unless you also give them that power in your will or trust. You can also give your patient advocate the power to donate your organs or your entire body upon your death.

Often, people do not like to talk about how they will handle their healthcare if they get sick or age.  But finalizing these issues BEFORE you need to is the key.  The holidays are a good time to discuss these issues since it is one of the rare times that many family members are together. Even if it’s only to get them on the family radar.

Do you know where Dad keeps his will or trust?  Do you know what your Mom and Dad want done when they die?  These are important topics to discuss with your family so there will be no surprises.  Communication and preparation can avoid conflicts in the family and unnecessary expenses that arise when your family’s wishes are not known when they get sick or die.

So enjoy the holidays but also find some time to have the important discussions that are necessary to be prepared prior to an illness.

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Although we’d all like to avoid it, it’s likely that most of us will at some point be admitted to the hospital. Whether you are staying in a hospital for a happy event, such as the birth of a child, or are being admitted due to an emergency or serious illness, you should understand how a hospital works. MyHealthSpin’s Easy Healthcare: Your Hospital Stay reveals the easy and practical answers that only an insider knows.

Available for download NOW!

The post Talking Family Healthcare at the Holidays appeared first on MyHealthSpin.

Few things in healthcare are as frustrating as having an aging parent with health issues and not be able to see their medical records.  Whether  you are a family member caring for a senior or  or senior yourself who wants to make sure  your potential caregiver can have the information they need,  you should know how to get or give permission to view medical records.

First, your loved one always has the right to designate who they want to have access to their medical records.  When a senior goes to a doctor or hospital, they should specifically ask to fill out a a form saying who should get access to their health records.  The senior’s spouse or children will not necessarily have access without the authorization.

Second, a doctor is allowed to give information to a spouse or family member if he or she is present during a doctor’s visit or a hospital stay.  If the senior has a family member come with them to the doctor, the doctor can assume that the senior wants the family member to have access to the senior’s medical information unless the senior states otherwise.

Third, a senior should have a “Living Will.”  Also called a “Healthcare Declaration,” this  legal document, which varies in different states, will allow the person named in it to make decisions about the patient’s healthcare if they are unable to make decisions themselves.  A Living Will  is fairly simple to fill out.  Often, seniors want to list all of their children, so they can make a joint decision.  This is unwise.  When a loved one is seriously ill, it will be very hard to get a single decision from every family member, each of whom may be scattered all over the country or world.  It’s better to name one person and ask them to talk to the whole family before making the final decision according to the wishes of the patient.

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How do you make the right decision about moving yourself or a loved one into an Assisted Living Facility without being overwhelmed? How do you even begin talking about it? MyHealthSpin’s “Easy Healthcare: Choosing an Assisted Living Facility” ebook guide gives you all of the practical advice you need to make the right choice.

Available for download NOW!

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