Your estate plan can include a will and a trust, and you may also want to consider including a healthcare power of attorney.
A healthcare power of attorney is a legal tool that gives another person the authority to make healthcare decisions for you if you are unable to. If you have become incapacitated due to injury or illness, the person with healthcare power of attorney can consent in your place to necessary medical care.
Elements
Your healthcare power of attorney should include your name and address, who you are designating as your health care representative, and your wishes for medical treatments, including whether you want life-sustaining treatments (like life support, for example). Your health care representative should be someone you trust and who respects your plans.
If you want to donate your organs, you may want to include that as well, in addition to any other specific instructions you want your representative to carry out.
Estate plan
There are several benefits to including the healthcare power of attorney in your estate plan. In addition to expressing your preferences to medical professionals if you are incapacitated, it can reduce stress on your family members. It relieves them of the obligation to make difficult decisions, because you have already done so.
It can also provide you with a better quality of life and an estate plan can preserve assets that can be distributed to your beneficiaries if you pass away.
It is important that it is executed correctly so that it is legally valid and can be recognized by healthcare professionals. It will also need to be reviewed regularly and updated if your health wishes change.