Living will and dying well: End-of-life resources for your clients

(March 2005) With the ongoing saga (and media coverage) of the Terri Schiavo situation in Florida, many of your clients may be seeking more information about living wills. A living will is not the same as a power of attorney. A living will explains what a person would like (and not like) in the way of personal care and medical treatment should he or she become incapacitated as a result of illness, injury or old age. This may include instructions to not resuscitate or to not use artificial life support.

Advisor.ca has compiled a number of resources you can share with clients that have any questions about living wills and other end-of-life choices.

The University of Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics has created several living will documents that provide information about the different legislation on living wills in each province. They also provide answers to question such as:

• Why should I make a living will?
• How is a living will different from a regular will or power of attorney?
• What should I do with my completed living will?
• Will my living will be followed?

In addition, these documents include information about health and personal care decisions and a template clients can use to create their own living wills. To access these documents, please click here.

Dying with Dignity is a registered charitable organization whose mission is to improve the quality of dying for all Canadians in accordance with their own wishes, values, and beliefs. They offer a counselling program that provides information and support to individuals who are making important end-of-life decisions.

Their web site includes a glossary of terms, information on hospices and palliative care across the country, a reading list and links to related sites.

Choices in Dying is a Vancouver-based organization dedicated to improving the quality of dying for all, in accordance with the individual’s wishes and beliefs. Their web site provides information on living wills, advance directives, a list of related web sites and books that provide information on this topic.

World Federation of Right to Die Societies consists of 38 right to die organizations from 23 countries. Their web site provides:

• Answers to over 40 questions related to the right to die.
• One-page fact sheets on issues related to the right to die.
• Definitions for several commonly used terms related to euthanasia, assisted suicide, end-of-life treatment options, advance directives (living wills, etc.), medical care, and related concerns.
• Right to die sites and resources, articles, news and legal links.

For more information of about how living wills are dealt with across the country, please click on the links below.

Staff

The staff of Advisor.ca have been covering news for financial advisors since 1998.