Planning Today for Medical Care Tomorrow
Advance directives are legal documents that let others know about your wishes and how to honor them if you can’t speak for yourself. Advance directives include living wills, medical powers of attorney and pre-hospital medical directives. You may choose which documents to complete, depending on how you want decisions to be made. There are no documents required in Arizona. Your completed forms can be submitted to the Arizona Healthcare Directives Registry (azhdr.org), a secure online registry for housing advance directives.
Document Your Wishes for Future Medical Treatment
Thoughtful Life Conversations can kickstart your efforts to ensure that you receive the type of medical care you want. Starting this conversation can be difficult, but it’s important to let others know about how to honor your wishes if you can't speak for yourself, whether due to an accident, medical event or towards the end of life. Legally putting your decisions into writing through advance directives, also known as healthcare directives, and other forms ensures medical professionals and family members can carry out your wishes.
It is recommended that all competent adults over the age of 18 complete a Living Will and a Healthcare Power of Attorney. These documents are straightforward and meet legal requirements.
Why should I complete an advance directive?
Advance directives are legal documents that help you communicate future healthcare treatment decisions and appoint someone to speak for you if you are not able to speak for yourself.
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Types of Advance Care Planning Forms
Living Will
Fill out to plan for your future medical care
A Living Will is a written statement that expresses your wishes about medical care if you are ever in a terminal condition, a persistent vegetative state or an irreversible coma. You should talk to your doctor about what these terms mean (Office of the Attorney General of Arizona, Life Care Planning Packet). Your Living Will must be signed by the patient and witnessed and notarized. It is a standalone document that may also have other advance care planning documents attached to it.
What to do after you’ve filled out your Living Will
For details on registering your Living Will with the Arizona Healthcare Advance Directives Registry, click here. It is recommended that you give a copy of this document to the person you have appointed as your healthcare power of attorney, your loved ones, and healthcare providers.
Healthcare Power of Attorney
Fill out if you want to designate someone to speak for you
The Durable Healthcare Power of Attorney, also known as a Medical Power of Attorney, is a document that lets you choose another person, called an "agent," to make healthcare decisions if you can no longer make those decisions for yourself. Unless the document includes specific limits, the agent will have broad authority to make any healthcare decision you could normally make for yourself. This could include a decision about whether OR not to continue tube feeding. (Office of the Attorney General of Arizona, Life Care Planning Packet, Frequently Asked Questions)
The Health Care Power of Attorney must be signed by the patient and witnessed or notarized and attached to your Living Will.
What to do after you’ve filled out your Healthcare Power of Attorney
For details on registering your Healthcare Power of Attorney with the Arizona Healthcare Advance Directives Registry, click here. It is recommended you give a copy of this document to the person you have appointed as your healthcare power of attorney, your loved ones, and healthcare providers.
Durable Mental Healthcare Power of Attorney
Fill this out if you want to designate someone to speak for you about your mental healthcare decisions
The Durable Mental Healthcare Power of Attorney is a document that lets you choose another person, called an "agent," to make mental healthcare decisions if you can no longer make those decisions for yourself. The Mental Healthcare Power of Attorney must be signed by the patient and witnessed or notarized and attached to your Living Will.
What to do after you’ve filled out your Durable Mental Healthcare Power of Attorney
For details on registering your Durable Mental Healthcare Power of Attorney with the Arizona Healthcare Advance Directives Registry, click here. It is recommended you give a copy of this document to the person you have appointed as your healthcare power of attorney, your loved ones, and healthcare providers.
Prehospital Medical Care Directive or Do Not Resuscitate (The Orange Form)
Fill out if you do not want to be resuscitated by Emergency Medical Service (EMS) personnel (firefighters, first responders)
The Prehospital Medical Care Directive, or Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) form, informs emergency personnel outside of a hospital setting that if you stop breathing or your heart stops beating, they are not to start cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) nor use equipment, drugs or devices to restart your heart or breathing.
Print this form in color on letter-size (8.5” x 11”) paper and display it in plain sight in your home. You may also print the form in color on wallet-size paper. The form must be signed by you (the patient), a licensed healthcare provider, and a witness or a notary.
Two ways to request a DNR form:
1. Click here to download the DNR form (print on orange paper)
2. Call 602- 542-2123 or 800-352-8431 and leave a message
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DNR Form (Print on Orange Paper) |
POLST: Portable Medical Orders
Fill out with your healthcare provider if you are seriously ill or frail
The POLST form is designed for people who are seriously ill or medically frail. The POLST form is most useful for people who want less than fully aggressive medical treatment in their current state of health.
In contrast to a Living Will, which can be filled out at any time in your life and addresses how you would generally like to be cared for at the end of your life, POLST forms are only filled out when you have reached an advanced illness and specify how you would like to be cared for given your current condition and situation.
POLST forms are completed by your healthcare provider (Physician, Physician’s Assistant or Nurse Practitioner) after discussing your diagnosis, what your treatment options are, how your illness will progress, and what is most important to you in your life. The POLST form must be signed by both you (the patient) and your healthcare provider. During an emergency, no matter where you are (at a hospital, care facility, your own home, etc.) your POLST helps doctors, emergency medical professionals, and other health care professionals understand the care you want if you cannot speak for yourself.
What to do after you’ve completed your POLST form with your healthcare provider
It is recommended that you update your Living Will at the same time you complete your POLST form and attach the documents to each other. For details on registering your POLST with the Arizona Healthcare Advance Directives Registry (AzHDR), click here. Important Note: The AzHDR will accept your POLST only if it is attached to your Living Will.
It is recommended you give a copy of this document to the person you have appointed as your healthcare power of attorney, your loved ones, and healthcare providers. A POLST form is always voluntary and can be updated as needed. Click here for more information on POLST.