My Life, My Choice
Great Plains Health advance care planning
The ability to make decisions about your medical care is an important right. It includes your right to be informed of your medical choices (including risks and benefits) as well as your right to accept or refuse medical treatment.
To be effective, your choices need to be communicated to the medical facilities and professionals taking care of you. It is most important to communicate your choices to the person(s) you have chosen to make health care decisions if you cannot.
What is advance care planning?
Advance care planning is a planned process of communication to help you incorporate your personal goals, values and beliefs into determining your choices regarding your health care, then communicating these decisions to your medical power of attorney and family and assisting with an advance directive.
Advance care planning services offer you the ability to make decisions about your medical care including:
- Your right to be informed of your medical choices
- The risks and benefits of your choices
- Your right to accept or refuse medical treatment according to your personal goals, values and beliefs.
Advance care planning also offer you the ability to:
- Inform family members of your wishes and choices for your medical care.
- Document clear instructions of your choices and wishes in accordance with state law.
- Add your advance directive to your medical records.
- Have your choices and wishes followed when you are no longer able to make health care decisions.
- Understand how to update your advance directive.
What is an advance care planner's role?
Advance care planners are trained to assist you in exploring your options regarding medical care. They will meet with you and your chosen medical power of attorney to explore and discuss your choices regarding your health care.
Advance care planners may refer you to speak with your physician, pastor or other professionals regarding questions you may have.
How does the program work?
Call the number below if you are interested. You will be assigned an advance care planner who will contact you.
The advance care planner will review with you any current advance directive or planning documents and work with you to develop a plan that expresses your choices and wishes.
Why plan now?
No one can see into the future. It is important to begin to plan for your health care choices as you may need time to understand what they are, reflect and talk with your physician and/or other professionals, your pastor and your family as you choose.
Most important, you are making sure that your choices are clearly stated and communicated in the event your medical power of attorney needs to make decisions for you. These wishes and the name of your medical power of attorney should be set out in a written document that delegates your medical power of attorney and what decisions you want him or her to make. This document is called a durable power of attorney for health care.