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Information about all aspects of finances affected by a serious health condition. Includes income sources such as work, investments, and private and government disability programs, and expenses such as medical bills, and how to deal with financial problems.
Information about all aspects of health care from choosing a doctor and treatment, staying safe in a hospital, to end of life care. Includes how to obtain, choose and maximize health insurance policies.
Answers to your practical questions such as how to travel safely despite your health condition, how to avoid getting infected by a pet, and what to say or not say to an insurance company.

My Survivorship A to Z Guide

Planning Ahead Important

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Note: This is a sample Survivorship A to Z Guide for a fictitious person we call Ellen. She is just diagnosed with Breast Cancer. To view a summary of her answers which led to this Guide, click here.

To get your own free, computer-generated A to Z Guide, click here.

Consider writing a Living Will, a Health Care Proxy and/or a DNR to let people know what care you do or don't want in case your health takes a turn and you can't communicate. Also consider executing a Durable Power Of Attorney.

You indicated that you do not have any a Living Will, a Health Care Power of Attorney or a Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) Order.

Do you remember Terry Schiavo? She's the woman in Florida that captured so much national attention and even a bill in the United States Congress. She was kept alive for years and years after an incident that left her in a vegetative state with no functioning brain. The main reason for her spending years supported by machines was because she had not executed the documents we're talking about.

Think about what you would want to happen if something like that happened to you. We have an article to help you think through both what could happen, and what you would want in each case. (Click here.)

Then consider the following the documents: 

  • A Living Will describes your wishes about certain medical procedures you do or do not want if you become unable to communicate for yourself. 
  • A Health Care Power of Attorney appoints someone (a "Proxy") to make medical decisions for you if you become unable to  make them for yourself.
  • A Do Not Rescuscitate Order (DNR) states that you do not want to be rescuscitated if your heart stops beating. For information about the practical effects of a DNR, speak with your doctor and your other advisors.

If you decide not to execute all of the documents, at least consider executing a Health Care Power of Attorney. A Health Care Power Of Attorney is like a regular power of attorney, except it only applies to health care. The document gives someone you trust the power to make medical decisions for you when you cannot make or communicate them for yourself. A Health Care Power Of Attorney is particularly useful for the gray areas when circumstances do not fit the exact descriptions included in the next document, a Living Will. It also appoints a person to enforce your wishes about medical care when you cannot express them yourself.  

  • Of course choose with care the person you appoint as proxy, and his/her substitute. (For information about how to choose the right person, click here.)
  • Let the person you name to enforce your wishes know that this site contains an article about enforcing these documents which together are called Advance Directives or Advance Healthcare Directives.

You can find a free copy of forms that fit the requirements of the laws of your state at Caring Connections offsite link. Click on State-Specific Advance Directives.

Make sure your documents are executed as required by the law of , as well as the law of any other state in which you live. Give copies to the people who need to have them.

Give a copy of each document to each of the following:

  • All your doctors
  • The hospitals you visit
  • The people named to carry out your wishes

Tell your family members what your wishes are so there are no fights later.

Let the person or people who you name to enforce your wishes know that, if needed, we have an article about How to Enforce Advance Directives.

If you travel, take a copy of your advance directives with you.

Healthcare Power of Attorney For Mental Health: This documnent is similar to the Healthcare Power of Attorney except that it relates to the situation in which you cannot make medical decisions because of mental health. If you decide to execute one, be sure to follow the law of your state. To learn more, click here.

Durable Power Of Attorney For Finances: A Durable Power of Attorney For Finances appoints another person to take over your financial affairs if you become incapacitated. Financial matters are not covered by the above Advance Directives. A Durable Power Of Attorney can be written to take effect now or when a described event happens - such as your inability to communicate for yourself. To learn more, click here.

NOTE: If you have a List of Instructions, it will help the person(s) you name as Proxy under the Durable Power of Attorney For Finances. It will also help you keep your life together. 

Check all documents and accounts with beneficiaries on them (such as life insurance and investment accounts) to be sure the beneficiary you want is listed. Circumstances may have changed. [Tell me more]

For instance, check your:

  • Life insurance policy
  • Retirement accounts
  • Stock and bond accounts
  • Bank accounts, including CDs
  • Safe deposit box