What Is the Difference Between All These 'Directive' Names?
Why your state calls it one thing – and your cousin in another country calls it something completely different You are trying to do the right thing. You want to document your medical wishes. You open your browser. And suddenly you are drowning in alphabet soup. Advance Health Directive. Advance Care Directive. Medical Directive. Living Will. Healthcare Power of Attorney. Do Not Resuscitate Order. Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (POLST). Medical Orders for Scope of Treatment (MOST). Are these the same thing? Different things? Do you need one or all of them? Here is the honest answer: Names change by state. What California calls an Advance Health Care Directive, Texas calls a Medical Power of Attorney combined with a Living Will. What Australia calls an Advance Care Directive, the UK calls a Living Will or Advance Decision. The names are different. Cloud storage services , the underlying purpose – documenting your medical wishes in case you cannot spe...