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 Considering a Life Care Plan Several elements are of paramount concern in thinking about one's future. These elements include: (1) how you wish your body to be treated if you suffer either permanent incapacitation or death; (2) whether the persons related to you can access your financial information; and (3) services and arrangements if you were to suffer death. Treatment for Your Body If You Became Incapacitated If you became incapacitated tomorrow, how would you want the hospital or the long-term care professionals to treat your body? This is not really an issue if you are conscious or temporarily paralyzed, but is a significant issue if you are unconscious or in a coma from, for example, a family outing at the river, where you and your three year old son were canoeing, and the canoe tipped throwing you into the water and hitting your head on a rock. Do you want life-support to continue? Do you want daily hydration to continue or to be withheld at some point? What about certain professionals who maintain their beliefs that certain treatments may help you recover, when they might seem ridiculous to your family? It might be worth it to consider these issues and to specify these in writing. One way to do so is in the form of a Living Will and/or Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare. Another form which may help trigger some issues for thought would be those items set forth in the Declaration Regarding Final Arrangements. Treatment of Your Body If You Suffered Death If you were to suffer death unexpectedly are you prepared? More importantly have you taken the steps you can to keep the trouble, hassle and huge expense of time and money to a minimum for your family? Once again, the Living Will analysis might assist in this area. Also, do you have a will and is this enough? For a detailed discussion of these issues and whether you should have a will, or whether you should undertake more planning, see the following topics: In addition, by referring to the Declaration Regarding Final Arrangements, you will be directed to many legal issues that deal with how you wish your body to be treated at death. A thorough review of this form, and completion at a convenient and unpressured time, may help you to make certain decisions about these issues, and not leave your family at a loss in wondering why and how you could fail to plan for this event. Services, Funeral Arrangements and Other Details Again to assist your family, you should give some thought to the issues of funeral arrangements, services, burial and other related issues. The Declaration Regarding Final Arrangements again may be helpful to placing some of your desires in writing, even though it may difficult to talk to another about these issues. Many spouses do not, when pressured to answer, know how their own spouse wishes to be buried, where they wish to be buried, or how much of a service would be desired and other related issues.
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