News

Advance Directives available at Beebe

04/07/05

Beebe Medical Center has available for free to the public the legal forms developed by the state of Delaware that are used to prepare end-of-life instructions and to appoint a health care power of attorney.

These written, Advance Health Care Directives, once completed, signed, dated and witnessed as required, allow individuals to decide ahead of time what happens in the event that they are unable to communicate their wishes.

There is no greater gift than the gift of information, says Ellen Tolbert, Director of Patient Relations for Beebe Medical Center. And we want to remind people that they need to put their wishes in writing.

Tolbert believes that, based on the recent influx of telephone calls she has fielded following the publicity around the Terri Schiavo case, many people have grown seriously concerned about what would happen if they, too, were unable to make a decision on their own personal health care.

The vast majority feel a person should be the only one to make that decision, she says.

In 1990, Congress passed the Patient Self Determination Act, which requires hospitals, nursing homes and others that receive Medicare, or Medicaid funding to inform patients about their rights under state law to make decisions regarding medical care. This includes the right to accept or refuse medical care, and the right to make advance directives. Although it is a federal right to have an advance directive, each state has different laws. In Delaware, there are two types of Advance Directives, End of Life Instructions (health care choices for terminal and permanent coma conditions) and the appointment of a Health Care Power of Attorney.

The biggest mistake adults make, no matter what their age, is that they don't need an Advanced Directive, said Dr. Jeffrey Hawtof, a member of Beebe's Medical Staff.

Hawtof, whose office is Long Neck Family Practice, has been giving seminars on the subject for six years. He says that the state has done a good job of creating a document that each person can use to express individual wishes. At the same time, he urges people to consult with their doctors as they fill out the forms so that they understand the ramifications of their decisions.

For more information on the subject, or to request an Advanced Health Care Directives packet, call Beebe Medical Center Patient Relations at 645-3547.