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Numerous legal documents in the United States provide guidelines on end-of-life decisions, including the Living Will and the Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare. Living Will and the Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care are integral documents that ensure individualized end-of-life care, quick decision-making, and fulfillment of the client’s wishes (David et al., 2019). Without these documents, chaos, fulfillment of the client’s care, and prolonged decisions are prone to occur. Therefore, disregard for end-of-life documents could lead to ethical issues such as autonomy and beneficence, which are integral in the care of individuals.
A Living Will is a document that allows an individual to state their preferences for medical care in advance should they become unable to communicate their wishes due to a terminal illness or injury. This document should include an individual’s preferences about medical treatments that should be used to prolong their life and any treatments that should be withheld or withdrawn (David et al., 2019). A Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare is a legal guideline that allows an individual to select a representative to make healthcare decisions on their behalf should the individual become incapacitated (Desai & Giwa, 2022). This document gives the appointed agent the authority to make decisions regarding any medical treatments, including life-sustaining treatments that they believe to be in the individual’s best interests. The agent is also empowered to access medical records, make decisions about hospitalizations, and arrange for hospice care.
Individuals may not have their wishes respected in a medical emergency without these documents. Without a Living Will, an individual may not be able to make their own decisions regarding their medical care. Without this document, families and medical professionals may have to make difficult decisions on behalf of the individual, which may not align with their wishes (Picón-Jaimes et al., 2022). Additionally, without a Living Will, medical professionals may feel obligated to provide treatments that the individual may not have wanted. Without a Durable Power of Attorney for Health Care documents, an individual may not have a trusted loved one to make decisions on their behalf (Picón-Jaimes et al., 2022). This situation can be problematic, as the individual’s wishes may not be respected if there is no one to advocate for them. Additionally, without this document, families may be put in the difficult position of having to make decisions without the guidance of the individual.
Ethical issues relating to withdrawing treatment, euthanasia, and research in end-of-life and euthanasia events are complex and can be highly contentious. In the case of withdrawing treatment, the ethical problem is that it involves the intentional withholding of medical aid from an individual. This factor raises questions about respect for autonomy and beneficence in that a patient may not be ready to make such a decision or may not be able to do so due to physical or mental incapacitation (Akdeniz et al., 2021). Additionally, there is the risk of making a decision that is not in the patient’s best interests, leading to potential wrongful death
In the case of euthanasia, the ethical issue concerns the deliberate ending of a person’s life to relieve suffering. This issue raises questions about autonomy and nonmaleficence, as the individual’s wishes may not be considered or respected (Picón-Jaimes et al., 2022). Additionally, the potential for abuse is of major concern, as the decision to end life could be taken without properly considering the individual’s best interests.
The Living Will and Durable Power of Attorney for Healthcare in the US ensure that loved ones are included in end-of-life healthcare decisions. These documents are vital for personalized end-of-life care, rapid decision-making, respecting client wishes, and avoiding ethical issues such as lack of autonomy in euthanasia. These data can prevent confusion, unmet patient needs, and delayed decision-making since the documents improve the legibility of hospice care protocols.
References
Akdeniz, M., Yardımcı, B., & Kavukcu, E. (2021). Ethical considerations at end-of-life care. SAGE Open Medicine, 9, 20503121211000918. Web.
David, D., McMahan, R. D., & Sudore, R. L. (2019). Living Wills–One Part of the Advance Care Planning Puzzle. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 67(1), 9. Web.
Desai, A., & Giwa, A. O. (2022). Power of Attorney. Web.
Picón-Jaimes, Y. A., Lozada-Martinez, I. D., Orozco-Chinome, J. E., Montaña-Gómez, L. M., Bolaño-Romero, M. P., Moscote-Salazar, L. R.,… & Rahman, S. (2022). Euthanasia and assisted suicide: An in-depth review of relevant historical aspects. Annals of Medicine and Surgery, 103380. Web.
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