Introduction to Your Hawaii Advance Health-Care Directive
This packet contains a legal document, the Hawaii Advance Health-Care Directive, that protects your right to refuse medical treatment you do not want, or to request treatment you do want, in the event you lose the ability to make decisions yourself.
Part 1, Durable Power of Attorney for Health-Care Decisions, lets you name someone to make decisions about your medical care, including decisions about life support. The Durable Power of Attorney for Health-Care Decisions becomes effective when your doctor determines that you can no longer understand the benefits, risks, and alternatives to proposed health care, or make and communicate health-care decisions yourself, or (b) immediately if you designate this on the The Durable Power of Attorney for Health-Care Decisions is especially useful because it appoints someone to speak for you any time you cannot or do not choose to make your own medical decisions, not only at the end of life.
Part 2, Instructions for Health care, functions as your state’s living will. It lets you state your wishes about medical care in the event that you can no longer speak for yourself and:
a) you have an incurable and irreversible condition that will result in death within a relatively short time, or
b) you become unconscious and, to a reasonable degree of medical certainty, will not regain consciousness, or
c) the likely risks and burdens of treatment would outweigh the expected benefits.
Part 3, Donation of Organs, this is an optional section that allows you to record your wishes regarding organ donation.
Part 4, Primary Physician, this is an optional section that allows you to designate your primary physician.
This form does not expressly address mental illness. If you would like to make advance care plans involving mental illness, you should talk to your physician and an attorney about a durable power of attorney tailored to your needs.
Note: This document will be legally binding only if the person completing it is a competent adult who is 18 years of age or older or an emancipated minor.