Living Will (Your Right to Die with Dignity):
Living Will is essentially a legal document that sets out a patient’s wishes with respect to the medical treatment they would prefer if they are in a permanent vegetative state or coma where they are unable to communicate.
In 2018, India’s Supreme Court has allowed people to draw up “living wills” i.e. “Advance Medical Directive” and recognized the right to die with dignity as a fundamental right. The Bench also held that the right to live with dignity also includes the smoothening of the process of dying in case of a terminally ill patient or a person in persistent vegetative state with no hope of recovery meaning they can seek what is known as passive euthanasia.
Essentials of a Living Will:
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The person drawing up the ‘living will’ must be an adult, who is of sound mind and is capable of communicating his/her decision clearly.
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This is a voluntary process and the ‘living will’ cannot be obtained under duress or coercion.
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The ‘living will’ must be in writing and the contents of it must clearly state that treatment may be withdrawn.
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It must contain a declaration stating that the person is drawing up the ‘living will’ has understood the consequences of executing the will.
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The ability to revoke any instructions made in the ‘living will’ must also be mentioned clearly.
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The name of a guardian or relative authorised to decide on behalf of the patient in adverse situations must also be clearly mentioned.
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The ‘living will’ must be signed by the person making it in the presence of two witnesses, countersigned by a jurisdictional judicial magistrate first class (JMFC), so designated by the concerned district judge.
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The witnesses and the judicial magistrate must record their satisfaction that the document has been drawn up and executed voluntarily without any coercion
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The JMFC has to preserve one copy of the document in his office and forward one copy of the document to the registry of the jurisdictional district court for being preserved.
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The onus of informing the immediate family members of this ‘living will’ be on the judicial magistrate.
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One copy also must be handed over to the municipal corporation for their record.
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The JMFC has to hand over a copy of the directive to the family physician.
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It should mention whether the patient may revoke the instructions/authority at any time.
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If there is more than one valid Advance Directive, the most recently signed Advance Directive will be considered as the last expression of the patient‘s wishes and will be implemented.
Here is – Why one needs a Living Will?
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For your peace of mind:
Dying, a natural process for many, becomes a nightmare for some. Your Living Will capture your need and desire to monitor your last days, particularly in the face of incurable disease. In brief, the right to fix the last supper rests with you so that your suffering soul is not trapped in a tattered body without being drenched in smelly secretions, without clutching to a laboured breath which in the normal course would have been the last breath.
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Avoid unwanted Medical Bills:
You may wish to rather die than live an additional 20 years on life-support. The reason being is because if you are on life support it will rack up enormous medical bills which your family will have to pay. If you do not specify this, then your family may be left paying insurmountable medical bills. If you do not want to see something like this happen then you need a living will that specifies exactly what you would like to happen in a given situation.
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Gives You Control over your Medical Treatment:
A living will also gives you control over what medical treatments and procedures you prefer in a situation where you are ill to the point of not being able to communicate.
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It speaks for you when you Cannot:
