Love is not enough
This video is a MUST SEE!
Advance Care Planning Australia have released a powerful video showing how the assumptions we might make as decision makers for our partners, parents or children could be inconsistent with their wishes.
The key message being to have those important conservations and document it for when it’s needed.
Click here for the 5 minute video, Love is not enough, below. The first 2 minutes is just setting the scene but stay with it as it really is worth a watch.
Imagine injuries so severe from a car accident that you’re left on life support. Would your partner or children know how you would want medical staff to act? Or your parent with dementia is taken to hospital from their aged care facility due to pneumonia. Would you know what they would want from end of life care should it come to that?
Hard conversations that many of us put off having or simply don’t have at all.
What is an Advance Care Plan?
For those of you who are not aware, an Advance Care Plan is a legal form, issued by the various state governments, that allows people to write down their wishes, preferences and instructions for:
- future healthcare
- end of life care
- living arrangements
- personal matters
It also allows you to appoint a substitute decision maker(s) to make decisions on your behalf when you are unable to do so. It goes hand in hand with your Medical Treatment Decision Maker Power of Attorney but gives specific details for those caring for you as to how they should act.
Click here for the forms and fact sheets for your state.
How can we help?
At Paxton Bridge, Advance Care Planning is included as part of the estate planning work that we do for clients. It’s so important because these are the types of discussions no one wants to have, yet do our loved ones really know what we would want if we couldn’t communicate with them?
People often think that documents like these are for people who are elderly and/or sick, but in reality none of us know what’s in store for us so isn’t it better that we talk with our loved ones?