To enforce the treatment preferences of you or your loved one toward specific healthcare situations, a legal document called an advance directive should be completed.

If you are conscious and able to make your own decisions when the time comes, advance directives allow you to give directions for your future medical care. You decide at what stage all medical intervention should stop when a disease is deemed incurable.

For example, an advance directive can specify whether or not you want to be put on a respirator if you are unable to breathe on your own.

People often assume their family will be able to make decisions for them even if they have not prepared an advance directive. However, forcing family members to make such choices for you places a tremendous burden on them.

Naming someone as your durable power of attorney for healthcare also helps ensure that you’ve got the right person for the job. If you do not designate a durable power of attorney for healthcare, your next of kin will automatically take on that decision-making role, in accordance with the law in most states.

For more information about advance directives and durable power of attorney, please visit the Arkansas Bar Association website at www.arkbar.com and click on “Living Wills & Other Information on End-of-Life Decisions.”