Page 8 - KootenaiHealth

MAny PeoPle don’T lIKe To THInK ABoUT the endof their life, let alone plan for it. However, informing others about your health care wishes is important, and having advance directives is one way both you and your family can be prepared prior to an emergency.

“Advance directives make patients’ wishes known if something should happen,” said Thomas nickol, M.d., an emergency medicine physician and current chief of staff at Kootenai Health. “Their families and physicians often depend on it during the fnal stages of life.” Advance directives are legal documents that inform others of your medical treatment wishes should you, in any way, become incapable of letting your wishes be

known. These documents allow health care providers to know the end-of-life treatment options you choose in the case of an emergency or extended illness.

“Sometimes a doctor or a family member will disagree with a patient’s wishes or may not know what those wishes are,” said Jennifer James, Kootenai Health chap-lain. “It’s important to make your wishes known to both your family and physician.”

Living will: A living will is a legal document that states whether you wish to have life-sustaining treatment and procedures if you have a terminal condition or are in a persistent vegetative state. It also outlines the level to which such treatment should be provided. A living will