March 31, 2006 marks the one-year anniversary of Terri
Schiavo’s death. More than any other story, Ms. Schiavo’s situation
brought the need for living wills and other advance directives to the forefront
of everyone’s attention. In the past year, an unprecedented number of
people have explored their personal health care desires and made plans for their
end-of-life wishes.
However, despite the increased attention and understanding, most American still
have not put their wishes down on paper. A recent study by the Pew Research
Center found that, although 70% of Americans have given thought to end-of-life
treatment, only 29% have made a living will.
A number of organizations are commemorating this first anniversary of Terri
Schiavo’s death to promote advance care planning. Caring Connections,
a program of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO),
is urging Americans to wear a white ribbon to raise awareness, particularly
on March 31st, in memory of Terri Schiavo.
“There are really four critical pieces to ensure that your wishes will
be carried out,” said Colleen Prosser of SinclairProsser Law, LLC. “One
is to use an attorney to help you create advance directives. Second, speak with
your loved ones about your desires. Third, make sure you have easy access to
your documents, especially in the event of an emergency, when you wouldn’t
be able to reach them yourself. And finally, make sure that you review these
documents periodically to see if they still reflect your wishes.”
A living will, health care power of attorney, HIPAA release and organ donation
forms are all important documents to consider when doing advance care planning.
It is also vital that these documents can be produced when they are needed,
but that’s often difficult. One study found that advance directives were
not available at the hospital in 3 out of 4 cases when needed.
“This is not surprising,” said Prosser. “We don’t carry
these papers around with us. And family members, in an emergency, are thinking
about their loved one, not about gathering legal documents.” Advance directive
emergency access services, like DocuBank (www.docubank.com),
are one solution to this problem. They electronically transmit copies of advance
directives to the hospital, which is important, especially during an emergency.
This first anniversary of Terri Schiavo’s death creates a great opportunity
for all adults – young and old -- to make sure their health care wishes
are known and up-to-date. Remember: Terri Schiavo was only 26 when her ordeal
began.
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