An advance directive (AD) is a legal document that outlines your health care preferences, treatment choices, and refusal of medical interventions, to be followed if in your future you are unable to choose for yourself.
Tips & Links
- Your advance directive outlines your choices for medical treatment, life-sustaining interventions, and end-of-life care. It may include health care measures you may want (for example pain management, hydration, and comfort measures), and measures you might not want (for example intubation, mechanical breathing, or life-prolonging medical interventions).
- Your advance directive lists your choices to be followed by your physician, health care professionals, family, and chosen decision makers such as your temporary substitute decision-maker (TSDM), and, if you have a representation agreement, your substitute decision-maker (SDM).
- Learn more about the difference between the legal documents of an advance directive, a representation agreement, and an enduring power of attorney. For example, an advance directive is a list of instructions while the representation agreement or enduring POA designates the person who must follow the list of instructions and be your voice.
- Get some of your questions answered about advance directives by Nidus.ca.
- Learn about an advance directive and advance care planning for youth and children from Healthlink BC.
- Review the advance directive planning kit and fillable pdf from Dying with Dignity Canada.
- If you or someone you care for has been diagnosed with dementia, review this dementia end of life booklet from the Alzheimer’s Society.
- Learn about free legal counselling services on advance directives from Senior’s First BC.
- Your Mywell Health planner has been designed to organize all your decision documents – keep digital and print copies in the section My End-of-Life Decisions.
Tools – Handouts & Videos
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