Colorado Advance Directives and Do Not Resuscitate Orders FAQs
Medical Power of Attorneys, Living Wills, DNRs, CPR Directives. Many clients want to make sure their medical choices are adhered to if they are unable to speak for themselves. To help them understand the basics - what are these documents and what do they do - I have written a brief summary, below. I strongly recommend that all of my clients, friends, and family have these documents completed so that their choices are honored about the care and control of their health care treatment if they cannot speak for themselves. This also avoids the terrible and onerous burden of having their close family members or friends have to go to court to obtain an order allowing them access to the care and treatment of their loved ones, should something happen, if these documents are not complete.
What is an advance directive?
An advance directive tells your doctor what kind of care you would like to have if you become unable to make medical decisions (for example, if you are in a coma). If you are admitted to the hospital, the hospital staff will probably talk to you about advance directives. If you are not hospitalized these documents are still important to have on hand.
A good advance directive describes the kind of treatment you would want depending on how sick you are. For example, the directives would describe what kind of care you want if you have an terminal condition or illness that you are unlikely to recover from, or if you are permanently unconscious. Advance directives usually tell your doctor that you don’t want certain kinds of treatment. However, they can also say that you want a certain treatment no matter how ill you are.
Colorado’s advanced directives are called Medical Powers of Attorney. The signer is making statements in advance about his or her preferences for medical care should he or she be unable to speak for themselves.
What is a medical power of attorney?
A medical power of attorney (POA) for health care states whom you have chosen to make health care decisions for you by allowing you to name an agent to step into your shoes and also allows you to express legally binding decisions about end of life choices. It usually becomes active any time you are unconscious or unable to make medical decisions. A POA is legally binding, so long as the named agent is present. If the agent is not present then the medical personnel will look to the language and wishes expressed in the living will and most likely adhere to the wishes expressed therein.
What is a living will?
A living will is another type of advance directive. It is a written, legal document that describes the kind of medical treatments or life-sustaining treatments you would want if you were seriously or terminally ill.
If your agent for medical power of attorney is not available to speak on your behalf the medical personnel will generally adhere to the wishes expressed in a living will, so long as it is properly executed per Colorado statute.
What is a do not resuscitate order?
A do not resuscitate (DNR) order is another kind of advance directive. A DNR is a request not to have cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) if your heart stops or if you stop breathing. Unless given other instructions, hospital staff will try to help any patient whose heart has stopped or who has stopped breathing. You can use an advance directive form or tell your doctor that you do not want to be resuscitated. Your doctor will put the DNR order in your medical chart. You both must sign this form in advance.
A medical ID allows you to communicate your choice when you cannot speak for yourself. A DNR request is usually made by the patient via a valid form, bracelet or agent named in the medical power of attorney, and allows the medical teams taking care of them to honor and adhere to the patient’s wishes.
In Colorado, CPR and advanced cardiac life support (ACLS) will not be performed if a valid written DNR order or CPR directive form is present. In Colorado, it is typical for emergency medical services personnel who are presented with a valid DNR form, signed by your doctor, or who identify a standard DNR bracelet on you, to comply with the DNR order.
Advanced Directives are an important part of your life planning necessities.
What is a CPR Directive
A CPR directive is similar to a DNR order. The Colorado CPR directive must be signed by both the individual and his/her physician. CPR directives must be immediately visible to emergency personnel. At home, the best locations are right by the front door, on the refrigerator, or by the bedside of a home-bound individual.
For more active clients with strong feelings about CPR directives, I recommend a special no-CPR bracelet or necklace that can be purchased from the Award and Sign Connection or MedicAlert Foundation.
Should you complete your advance directives?
By completing your advance directives, you are making your preferences about your medical care known before its too late. This will spare your loved ones the stress of trying to make decisions about your care and you receiving care against your wishes or beliefs. Any person 18 years of age or older can and should prepare their advance directives. Parents who send their children off to college should make sure the kids have medical POAs completed, so that should something happen they can make medical decisions for their children without having to get a court order for guardianship or conservatorship – same with adults with elderly parents, spouses, and single people.
