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What is a living will?

Writer's picture: Tim SmithTim Smith

Updated: Nov 10, 2022

A living will is a legal document which documents the type of medical care that you as individual wants or does not want, in the event that you are unable to communicate your wishes.

Understanding a living will

A living will only come into play when you face a life-threatening condition and are unable to communicate your desires for treatment.


For instance, if you as a patient are unconscious and suffer from a terminal illness or life-threatening injury, the attending doctor/s will act in line with your living will in order to determine whether or not you would want life-sustaining treatment.


In the event that you do not have a living will, these decisions about medical care fall upon your spouse's or other family member's shoulders. If you haven't discussed your wishes with these individuals they are left to make these impossible decisions.


Thus, a living will records your wishes and provides your loved ones with peace that this is what you would have wanted when certain decisions need to be made.


What is included in a living will?

A living will deals with medical procedures that are common in life-threatening situations, such as systems (resuscitation, ventilation, tube feeding) which are used in order to keep you alive in circumstances where, but for the use of such system, you would have died.


A living will can also record that you wish to be given whatever quantity of drugs which may be required in order to ensure that you are free from pain or distress even if the moment of death is hastened.


It is important to note that these wishes are only implemented from the point at which the doctors deem that there is no reasonable prospect of your recovery from your life-threatening condition, which is expected to cause you distress or render you incapable of rational existence.


Do you require a living will?

While a living will is not required by law, the type of medical events discussed above can happen to anyone at any stage, thus it is a good idea for all adults to have a living will.



Contact me today so that we can put an estate plan, including the drafting of a will and living will, into place for you.
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