Every state has its own limits as to what you are legally permitted to include in your directive. While you may specify instructions for a variety of medical situations and describe your feelings towards quality of life, keep in mind health care providers will only be allowed to carry out certain procedures according to your state laws.
You can make decisions regarding the following medical situations in your Living Will:
Terminal Illness or Injury
If you are terminally ill or injured, you can document which, if any, treatment options you would like to pursue.
Terminally ill or injured means that medical professionals have concluded that you have a condition that cannot be cured and that is expected to result in limited life expectancy.
Life Support
You can specify whether you would like to receive any form of life support in the event of a medical emergency.
Life support means any life-sustaining procedures done to a patient to restore function to an organ through medical intervention.
Common forms of life support include CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation), defibrillators, assisted breathing, dialysis, and artificially administered food and water.
DNR stands for "Do Not Resuscitate", which means you do not wish to receive life support or resuscitation if an organ fails.
Permanent Unconsciousness
You can address which, if any, treatments you would like to receive in the event of permanent unconsciousness, such as a coma or persistent vegetative state.
Permanent unconsciousness is when there is a reasonable degree of medical certainty that the patient can no longer think, feel, knowingly move, or be aware that they are alive, and there is no hope for improvement.
Comfort Care
You may list your preferences for whether or not you would like to receive comfort care near the end of your life.
Comfort care means healthcare professionals will use any means possible to relieve your pain, including administering medication or creating a comfortable environment for you to rest in.
Quality of Life
In a Living Will, you can define what you personally believe constitutes quality of life in order to inform medical professionals or family members as to what you would want to happen to you in the event of a life or death situation.
Quality of life refers to your personal health and comfort standards in relation to a medical emergency or terminal illness.