An elder law attorney helps you to ensure that you are as prepared as possible for a future that does not come with any guarantees. You never know when something could happen that leaves you seriously ill or badly injured and, in many of these situations, difficult decisions on medical care must be made. Unfortunately, the hardest decisions that have to be made on medical care often occur when you are not actually able to communicate your preferences. This means that your family is left in a difficult situation and you could find yourself with loved ones consenting to care on your behalf that you would have preferred not to have received. 
Mark S. Eghrari & Associates PLLC is here to help make sure that you spare your family tough choices and that you spare yourself from getting unwanted care. There are techniques that you can use to limit the care you receive and to express your preferences in advance of the time when a medical emergency happens. You should work with an elder law attorney at our firm today to put plans in place to control the medical care that you undergo in an emergency. Do not wait until it is too late and an unexpected emergency happens to you.
How You Can Avoid Unwanted Medical Treatments
The best way to avoid unwanted medical care is to make use of advanced directives. Advanced directives are tools that allow you to determine who will make decisions about your care. You can also use advanced directives to express specific preferences about different kinds of medical treatments under varying circumstances.
The New York State Office of the Attorney General provides a summary of the rules for advanced directives in the state of New York. Some of the advanced directives you can create include a living will and a tool that allows you to select a healthcare proxy. You can also complete a form called the MOLST form, which stands for Medical Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment, and/or could complete a Do Not Resuscitate Form (DNR).
A MOLST form is a form you complete to specify whether you want CPR, mechanical intervention, or other life-sustaining treatments performed on you. A DNR allows you to decline treatments like CRP and other extraordinary measures used to prolong or extend your life. And a healthcare proxy allows you to select a designated person who will make decisions on your behalf in the event of a medical emergency so there is no confusion about who doctors should ask for consent before providing you with care.
When you make a healthcare proxy, you have the opportunity to choose a person who will make decisions in circumstances where you have not specified your preferences on care. Since a MOLST from or a DNR do not necessarily cover every single decision that could arise when you are sick or hurt, choosing the right person to make decisions on your behalf is important. You can select a person who you are confident understands your values and knows how you would weigh quantity of life versus quality of life. You can also talk to the person you have chosen as your healthcare proxy in advance of the time when you get sick and give him or her specific information about how to evaluate a decision on your care.
If you take steps to use these advanced directives and you work with an experienced attorney to control your medical decisions, even when you cannot speak or directly control your care, you will be able to avoid receiving care you would have preferred to avoid and you will be able to spare your loved ones from fighting over your care or being forced into withholding life-sustaining medical help.
Getting Help from An Elder Law Attorney
An elder law attorney at Mark S. Eghrari & Associates PLLC will work closely with you to create advanced directives that allow you to specify exactly what your preferences are in regards to emergency medical care. We can also help you to plan ahead in case of incapacity and to take control over your legacy so you have the ultimate say in what happens to your money and property after you pass away.
To find out more about how our legal team can help you to maintain your autonomy even if you are sick or hurt and cannot speak for yourself, join us for a free seminar. You can also give us a call at (631) 265-0599 or contact us online to get personalized one-on-one advice about making your estate plan. Call today to get your plans in place.
Mark S. Eghrari, Estate Planning Attorney
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