Flaws in Your Advance Health Care Directive and How to Fix Them

Sometimes, people think that preparing for their future medical treatment won’t be necessary until they are older. However, a sudden illness or accident can happen to anyone at any time. If you were to become incapacitated, you would want your medical providers to have instructions from you regarding your care. Further, you would also want someone you trust to be in a position to make treatment decisions on your behalf. In California, you can achieve both of these goals by having an Advance Health Care Directive. However, not every Advance Healthcare Directive will have the features and language necessary to protect its creator’s interest. Therefore, it’s crucial that you make certain that your Advance Health Care Directive is in order. Here are some possible flaws in your Advance Healthcare Directive and how to fix them:

Your Advance Health Care Directive Contains the Wrong Language

Your Advance Health Care Directive is an essential estate-planning document that can directly impact how medical decisions are made regarding your care. As such, it’s crucial that your directive accurately states your instructions. Further, your Advance Health Care Directive must be prepared according to certain legal requirements. Therefore, you will want to ensure that this document is properly drafted in accordance with California law. The best way to help make sure that your Advance Health Care directive has the correct language is by having it prepared and reviewed by an experienced California estate planning attorney. Your lawyer can help you develop Advance Health Care Directive terms that protect your interests and comply with the law.

Your Advance Health Care Directive Needs to be Updated

Once your California estate planning attorney prepares your Advance Health Care Directive, you may put the document in a safe place and forget about it for the time being. However, as your life moves forward, your directive will remain unchanged. As such, this essential device may not reflect significant changes to your circumstances and health over time. For instance, you may decide you want someone else to serve as your medical decision-maker. You could also determine that you want a medical intervention that is not indicated in your directive. If your Advance Health Care Directive does not include these updated terms, they will not go into effect. Therefore, reviewing your Advance Health Care Directive with your attorney on a routine basis is essential to helping to ensure that that this crucial device accurately reflects your treatment and medical decision-maker preferences.

Your Advance Health Care Directive is Incomplete

Another flaw you may have in your Advance Health Care Directive is it being incomplete. It could be that you left information out because you prepared the document quickly while getting ready for a medical procedure. It may also be that you did not have the information you needed when the directive was drafted. Whatever the case may be, your Advance Health Care Directive can only safeguard your health if it includes all of your necessary and relevant information. If you believe your Advance Health Care Directive is incomplete, you should consult with your California estate planning attorney as soon as possible to discuss its contents and any terms you may need to add.

Your Advance Health Care Directive is Unclear

One flaw you may have in your Advance Health Care Directive is ambiguity. Your medical treatment providers will look to your directive for your specific instructions regarding your health care as well as the identity of your medical decision-maker. Therefore, you will want these terms stated in your Advance Health Care Directive so that there is no room for misinterpretation. Your California estate planning attorney can help you develop the right language to help ensure your wishes and instructions are clearly conveyed in your Advance Health Care Directive.

At the Law Offices of Alice A. Salvo, we are California estate planning attorneys with the experience you need to plan for your future. We help you avoid problems by creating perfect documents or fix flaws in your existing Advance Health Care Directive. Please get in touch with us online or by phone to schedule an appointment today.