When a Durable Power of Attorney is enacted, the proxy may make decisions according to the wishes or directions outlined in a _____ or previously communicated in person.

When a Durable Power of Attorney is enacted, the proxy may make decisions according to the wishes or directions outlined in a _____ or previously communicated in person.

• A. living will
• B. a medical power-of-attorney
• C. a court order
• D. a patient consent

Answer: (A)

Under a durable power of attorney for health care, the proxy’s decisions should reflect the patient’s known wishes. Those wishes are typically captured in a living will, a written advance directive that states what treatments the patient would want or refuse. If the patient previously spoke about preferences in person, those verbal directions should guide the proxy’s decisions when the patient cannot communicate. The other options don’t fit as well: a medical power-of-attorney is the appointment of who may decide, not the source of the patient’s instructions; a court order would be used only if no directive or surrogate exists; and patient consent is immediate consent for a specific treatment, not a standing directive for the proxy to follow in general.

Under a durable power of attorney for health care, the proxy’s decisions should reflect the patient’s known wishes. Those wishes are typically captured in a living will, a written advance directive that states what treatments the patient would want or refuse. If the patient previously spoke about preferences in person, those verbal directions should guide the proxy’s decisions when the patient cannot communicate. The other options don’t fit as well: a medical power-of-attorney is the appointment of who may decide, not the source of the patient’s instructions; a court order would be used only if no directive or surrogate exists; and patient consent is immediate consent for a specific treatment, not a standing directive for the proxy to follow in general.