Today we are recognizing National Healthcare Decisions Day, intended to empower and inspire people to prepare or review their advance directives. An advance directive, sometimes called a living will, is a legal document that outlines your health care preferences in the event that you become unable to make or communicate those choices. As part of the document, you choose a person, your “health care agent,” who will advocate for you during times when you so not have decision-making capacity. ​

We frequently receive questions about advance care planning and Act 39 (Medical Aid in Dying) in the context of dementia or severe cognitive decline. People ask us whether they can direct the use of medical aid in dying in advance, specifically in the case of dementia. The short answer is no. However there are steps you can take to help avoid prolonged life with severe dementia.