What is an Advanced Directive?

An advanced directive is a legal document that tells doctors and your family:
👉 What medical care you want (or don’t want)
👉 Who should speak for you if you can’t

Think of it as your medical voice when you can’t speak.

The Main Parts of an Advanced Directive

1. Living Will (Your Wishes)

This section answers: “What do I want if I’m very sick and may not recover?”

It usually covers:

• Life support (machines that keep you alive)

• Feeding tubes

• CPR (resuscitation)

• Ventilators (breathing machines)

• Dialysis

• Comfort care (pain relief)

• “This is where you decide how much medical intervention you want if your body can’t recover.”

Example:

• “I want everything done”

• “I only want comfort care”

• “I don’t want to be kept alive on machines long-term”

2. Healthcare Power of Attorney (Your Person)

This names: “Who will make decisions for me if I can’t?”

This person should:

• Know your wishes

• Stay calm under pressure

• Advocate for you

• Communicate with doctors

• “This is your voice when you can’t speak—your decision-maker.”

Important:

• This is often called a Healthcare Proxy

• You can name a backup person too

3. Code Status (Emergency Decisions)

This is about: What happens if your heart or breathing stops

Options include:

• Full Code → Do everything (CPR, shocks, intubation)

• DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) → Allow natural death

• DNI (Do Not Intubate) → No breathing machine

• “This is your emergency plan—what happens in a life-or-death moment.”

Key point:
This is often written as a doctor’s order in the hospital, but your directive guides it.

4. Treatment Preferences (How Aggressive?)

This section goes deeper into: How far you want care to go

Examples:

• Short-term vs long-term life support

• Trial periods (“try for 7 days, then reassess”)

• Quality of life preferences

• When to shift to comfort care

• “This is where you define your limits and what ‘quality of life’ means to you.”

5. Organ Donation

You can choose: Whether you want to donate organs or tissues

“This is your choice about helping others after you pass.”

6. Final Wishes / Additional Instructions

Not always required, but many include:

• Where you want to receive care (home vs hospital)

• Spiritual preferences

• Funeral or celebration-of-life ideas

• “This is where you personalize your care and how you want to be remembered.”

The BIG Picture (How It All Works Together)

👉 Living Will = What you want
👉 Healthcare Proxy = Who speaks for you
👉 Code Status = Emergency plan
👉 Preferences = How far to go

Together, they answer:

“If something happens to me, here’s what I want—and here’s who makes sure it happens.”