Advance / Medical Directives
Your Right to Make Decisions About Medical Treatment
This section explains your rights to participate in health care decisions and how you can plan what should be done when you can’t speak for yourself. Although a federal law requires us to give an adult over 18 years of age this information, the choice to have a advance medical directive is left up to you.
Making an Advance Directive
What happens if people become too sick to make their own medical decisions? Someone must decide when to start treatment, when not to start it, or when to stop it. Family members and doctors usually make decisions when the patient can’t. Sometimes they are not sure what is best. Sometimes they disagree. That’s when it would be good to know what the patient would have wanted and whom the patient would have wanted to make these decisions. That’s why it would be a good idea to talk with your family, close friends, and physicians about filling out an advance directive. Having one empowers you – if you’ve made your wishes clear, they’re more likely to be followed.
Living Will
A "Living Will" is not the same as a ‘last will and testament’. It has nothing to do with what happens to your personal property or your estate after death. The purpose of a Living Will is to let us know in advance how long you want life support treatment to be provided for you if you ever have to be put on life support machines. This “Living Will” will tell your doctor and family how long you want treatment provided and when you want it stopped. To download the "Living Will" document, please click here. The "Living Will" document is in PDF format. You must have Adobe Reader installed on your computer. Please see left sidebar for more information about Adobe Reader.
CPR Directive ("NO COR" or "NO CODE" or "DNR")
A CPR (Cardio-Pulmonary Resuscitation) directive tells your doctor what to do if your heart stops beating or you stop breathing. If you do not want CPR, a physician’s order must be written in your chart each time you are admitted. If you do want CPR, it will be automatically given to you, if necessary, while you are a patient.
Durable Power of Attorney
"A Medical Durable Power of Attorney" is not a ‘power of attorney’ for business or personal financial matters. It is only about your health care. In this kind of document you can state what types of medical treatment you want to have or don’t want to have. For example, do you want surgery, dialysis, blood transfusion, or cancer treatment? You can also name someone to make decisions for you ONLY when you can no longer make them yourself. To download the "Medical Durable Power of Attorney" document, please click here. The "Medical Durable Power of Attorney" document is in PDF format. You must have Adobe Reader installed on your computer. Please see left sidebar for more information about Adobe Reader.
Organ Donation
Organ donation provides an opportunity for you to give life and health to another individual. The decision to be an organ donor should be an informed one. Please inform the hospital staff if you are an organ donor. For information and a donor card, please ask your nurse.
Donating Blood
If you are being admitted for surgery, we encourage you to talk with your physician about your potential need for blood donations and the option of donating blood in advance for yourself (autologous transfusion). All blood donations in Colorado, whether for yourself, a family member or anyone else are coordinated through the Bonfils Blood Center (719) 296-1094. If possible please call in advance to arrange your blood donation.
For more information:
Pam Medina
Director of Patient Relations
719-584-4496
or
Reverend Edward Behling
Director / Protestant Chaplain
719-584-4478
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