A little more than 20 years ago there was a push for people to sign Advance Directives to Physicians to tell them about the medical care they wanted at the end of their life.
At the same time a Durable Power of Attorney was appointed to ensure that the Advance Directive was followed.
Now there is a huge ruckus going on because President Obama signed a regulation that doctors could be reimbursed for advising patients on end of life treatment.
When the information about Advance Directives first came out, I had conversations with my mom and grandmother.
I was working in a retirement and assisted living care center at the time.
We talked to each and every person there about the Advance Directive.
We told them we had to know what it was they wanted to happen if they could no longer make decisions for themselves.
The conversations were sobering, to say the least.
Both my mother and grandmother signed their Advance Directives and, with me being the oldest, I was appointed the Durable Power of Attorney.
When my mother had an unexpected massive stroke, she wasn't able to communicate to her doctors what she wanted for her treatment.
She and I had had many conversations.
She had no fear of death.
She only feared a tortuous and painful death.
Her physician knew she had the Advance Directive.
It was on file with the hospital.
They did not, however, pull it out and follow it.
I had to very strongly put my foot down and demand that it was followed.
Doctors are trained to save lives with everything they know.
They believe that death means they have failed.
I grew up with a doctor and saw his sadness when a patient died.
My grandmother lived more than two years longer than her daughter.
She was physically healthy in body, but had Alzheimer's.
One day I received a call from the nursing home that something had happened.
She was sitting in her wheel chair, not because she physically couldn't walk but because she forgot she could walk, and just collapsed.
They immediately put her in her room and called me.
They didn't tell me she was dying, but I knew it when I saw her.
If she had not had an Advance Directive they would have had to send her to the hospital where she would have been subjected to any number of horrid tests unnecessary for a woman in her 90s.
Because the document was on file they called me, the responsible party and her Durable Power of Attorney.
She was allowed to peacefully slip away.
I have my own documents signed.
People know what I want.
I am so thankful I had those documents for my mom and grandmother.
I knew what they wanted and followed their desires.