Serious accidents and medical conditions can leave anyone incapacitated, unable to communicate with their doctors and loved ones. During this difficult situation, a living will or advance medical directive may be the only way to ensure you receive the medical treatment you desire. Here are a few other reasons why an estate planning attorney should create a living will.

Why You Should Create a Living Will

1. Refuse Treatment

Many people have strong feelings about end-of-life care and may wish to refuse certain medical treatments. In your living will, you can give or withhold consent for specific procedures, such as feeding tube insertion, life support, or resuscitation.

2. Describe Acceptable Outcomes

Without a living will, doctors may take drastic measures to preserve your life, with results you may not have agreed to if you could communicate. An estate planning attorney can draft a document that describes the medical outcomes you would accept, requiring health care providers to plan interventions accordingly.

3. Preserve Relationships

When a loved one is incapacitated, disagreements between family members about health care decisions can cause rifts in closely-knit relationships. A living will takes these difficult decisions out of the hands of your loved ones, allowing them to focus on supporting one another while your wishes are respected.

4. Control Costs

Long-term treatment for patients who may not recover can be expensive, depleting your savings and those of loved ones. Many people draft living wills to control their medical expenses and protect their families from the financial side effects an accident or illness can bring.

Drafting a living will is often a difficult project, requiring you to imagine scenarios most people would rather not consider. For over 20 years, clients of all ages have relied on the estate planning attorneys at the Law Office of Dawn N. Murata LLLC in Oahu and Kauai, Hawaii, for compassionate guidance. View their services online, or call (808) 245-4572 to schedule a consultation with an experienced estate planning attorney.