Thursday, May 14, 2009

Five Wishes - Advance Directive

Five Wishes is a national advance directive created by the non-profit organization Aging with Dignity. It has been described as the "living will with a heart and soul."

Five Wishes
Wish 1: The Person I Want to Make Health Care Decisions for Me When I Can't
Wish 2: The Kind of Medical Treatment I Want or Don’t Want
Wish 3: How Comfortable I Want to Be
Wish 4: How I Want People to Treat Me
Wish 5: What I Want My Loved Ones to Know

Five Wishes is an easy to use legal document written in everyday language that lets adults of all ages plan how they want to be cared for in case they become seriously ill.

It is America’s most popular living will with more than 12 million copies in circulation.

Five Wishes helps you express how you want to be treated if you are seriously ill and unable to speak for yourself. It is unique among all other living will and health agent forms because it speaks to all a person's needs: medical, personal, emotional and spiritual. Five Wishes also helps structure discussions with your family and physician.

Five Wishes was introduced and originally distributed with support from a generous grant by The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the nation's largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to health and health care. A subsequent grant from the United Health Foundation made it possible to provide Five Wishes in 23 languages.

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Testimonials

"It will be a year since my mother passed on. We knew what she wanted because she had the Five Wishes living will. When it came down to the end, my brother and I had no questions on what we needed to do. We had peace of mind." Cheryl K., Longwood, FL

"I must say I live your Five Wishes. It's clear, easy to understand, and doesn't dwell on the concrete issues of medical care, but on the issues of real importance - human care. I used it for myself and my husband." Susan W., Flagstaff, AZ

"I don't want my children to have to make the decisions I am having to make for my mother. I never knew that there were so many medical options to be considered. Thank you for such a sensitive and caring form. I can simply fill it out and have it on file for my children." Diana W. , Hanover, IL

Five Wishes - Advance Directive

There are only ten states remaining in which Five Wishes does not yet meet the legal requirements. These states either require a specific state form or that the person completing an advance directive be given a mandatory notice or “warning.” Residents of these states can still use Five Wishes to put their wishes in writing and communicate their wishes with their family and physician. Most health care professionals understand they have a duty to listen to the wishes of their patients no matter how they are expressed.