Advantages of Polst Programs Over Advance Directives

I previously blogged about an emerging alternative to advance directives: The Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (Polst). Polst programs continue to gain popularity. They are currently in use in 14 states and many other states are developing programs.  Some advantages that Polst forms have over advance directives include:

• In addition to providing documents that comply with regulations, Polst programs also train healthcare providers to discuss end-of-life choices with patients.
• Advance directives can be misplaced while a Polst is an official medical order that remains part of the patient’s medical record.
• Advance directives can be vague whereas a Polst spells out specific treatment instructions.
• Advance directives vary state by state, and some states even use different documents.

See Laura Landro, New Efforts to Simplify End-of-Life Care Wishes, W.S.J., Mar. 15, 2011.

Special thanks to Joel Dobris (Professor of Law, UC Davis School of Law) and Jim Hillhouse (WealthCounsel) for bringing this to my attention.