She Signed a Living Will. Her Sister Didn’t Honor It.

“Even when you sign the papers, it is vital to talk about it with your family, said Catherine Auriemma, a pulmonary and critical-care physician at Penn Medicine. Her dad was going in for heart surgery, and said he had a directive when asked at check-in. His wife thought it was in their safe-deposit box, but he said he closed the box and put the papers in their bedroom closet. It wasn’t there.

He confirmed his wishes to the clinical team: His wife should make decisions for him if needed, after consulting with Auriemma and one of her brothers, who is also a doctor. “We just did the conversation without the paperwork,” she said. 

In a study, Auriemma and colleagues found that few patients discussed their directive with their family and clinical team. Patients felt that after completing the form, they didn’t have to talk about it.”

Read more at The Wall Street Journal.