With each life event, you plan and prepare. You plan for a wedding when you get engaged, prepare a resume when you graduate college, create a retirement plan while in your career, research neighborhoods and schools when you have children and plan for retirement as you reach age 65. Much thought and consideration go into the major decisions in life, and all of these life events are reason to create or update an estate plan.
When you think of an estate plan, the document you most often think of is a will. While this is frequently the backbone of an estate plan, one does not only need to think about their property and assets when drafting an estate plan.
Creating a living will
Even when we are healthy, it is important to consider what would happen if your health suddenly depreciates or diminishes with old age. The legal team at Cynthia I. Waisman, P.A. knows firsthand the importance of designating your wishes when it comes to medical treatments and interventions. This is where a living will can come into play.
A living will is a document that designates what medical treatments they agree to if they are determined to be incapacitated or terminally ill. This document serves as your consent for treatment, as this is required prior to any medical action taken by a doctor.
Designating your end-of-life care
A major function of a living will is to establish the end-of-life care you agree to receiving. This includes your decisions about resuscitation or if you want the advanced directive to explicitly state to not resuscitate.
While it details what treatments you consent to for your end-of-life care, it also indicates your treatment preferences in the event of incapacitation. When you are young, it can be difficult to think about this; however, we do not know what the future will bring. Thus, it is important to help your loved ones understand what medical interventions and treatments you agree to receiving if you are unable to consent to them yourself.
Because an estate plan can contain a wide range of documents, it is important to consider the importance of each document and how they work with each other. A legal professional can help explain your options and answer any questions or concerns you might have.
