Dr. Susan Tolle, Chair of the Oregon POLST Coalition, created a 5-minute video that guides viewers through a POLST form (Portable Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment). This standardized, single page, brightly colored form can be vital for healthcare providers in managing fragile or seriously ill patients towards the end of life, and particularly helpful for managing one’s wishes for intensive care treatment and assisted breathing with ventilators.
It is important to note that not everyone needs a POLST – it is for the seriously ill. An Advance Directive is another standardized, but more complex, legal document that also sets forth your wishes for medical care and life-sustaining treatments and/or designates a Health Care Representative to express those wishes to healthcare providers, should you be unable to speak for yourself. Everyone should have a properly executed Advance Directive, for the unforeseen, but not everyone, necessarily needs a POLST; it depends on your medical condition.
Victoria Blachly is a partner at SYK, and an experienced fiduciary litigator that works with many elderly clients, cases and causes. She is also a proud Board Member for the Oregon Alzheimer’s Association Chapter.
