On Wednesday, December 14, 2011, at 10:00 a.m., I will be conducting a seminar on Advance Directives at the Mill Creek Senior Center in Mill Creek, Washington. The class focuses on all aspects of Powers of Attorney, Living Wills and the POLST form. The program is sponsored by Evergreen Healthcare.
This Wednesday, August 3, 2011, I will be conducting another “Are Your Affairs In Order?” class at the Maltby Church in Snohomish, Washington. The class focuses on all aspects of Wills, Trusts, Powers of Attorney and Living Wills. The program is sponsored by Evergreen Healthcare.
I get a fair number of questions about the POLST form. So here’s a brief synopsis. POLST stands for Physicians Order for Life Sustaining Treatment. The POLST form is not a substitute for an advance directive, or Living Will, but is intended to “summarize” a person’s wishes regarding life sustaining treatment. The form is not created by an attorney. It is supposed to be provided only by a physician and to be effective must be signed by both the patient and physician. The form contains sections covering administration of CPR, other medical interventions, administration of antibiotics, administration of artificially provided nutrition and a summary of goals. As with most everything the POLST form is appropriate for some people and not others. So give some thought as to when and under what circumstances you should complete the form.
In addition to the seminar on Advance Directives I am scheduled to give on April 15 at the Peter Kirk Community Center in Kirkland that was already posted, I am also speaking on general estate planning topics at two additional events. One is on April 21, 2011, from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at the Northshore Y in Bothell and the other is on May 11, 2011, at the Redmond Senior Center in Redmond, Washington.
I am scheduled to give a seminar on Advance Directives and End-of-Life issues at the Peter Kirk Community Center in Kirkland, Washington on April 15, 2011. Recently, the Wall Street Journal ran a good article touching on a number of issues I’ll be covering.
The Wall Street Journal recently ran a nice article on the importance of Advance Directives including Living Wills and Health Care Powers of Attorney. These documents are used to inform medical providers, family and others of your wishes regarding your care when you are not able to communicate with them. Washington State has a prescribed form Living Will, however, you are allowed to add more detail and guidance to the form. Equally important is the Health Care Power of Attorney by which you select an individual, often a spouse or adult child, to make medical decisions on your behalf. These documents are often included in a comprehensive estate plan.
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