Here's an article published in Lawyersclubindia.
Regards.
C H Mahadevan
Dad collapsed at lunch.
We were at home and rushed him to hospital. One of Bombay’s best doctors, son
of mom’s friend, immediately examined dad, on the lobby floor. ‘Khotto sikko chey,’ he said. A
‘counterfeit coin’. He gave us two days, to make ‘preparations’. Did dad have a
Will? No. Was he going to make one? No. Frankly, his love for us was worth more
than the billions he could not give. We simply did not care.
Should our family have
been worried? A definite ‘Yes’. A big ‘YES’. We have had a lot of seminars
at Moneylife,
dealing with Wills. The one thing we learn from them is that we cannot foresee
everything. We have to do the best we can.
Dad, being dad, came home
a month later. But we knew better. A wooden nickel. Did we do anything then?
No. A month later, we were back in hospital. This time, we knew for sure. The
doctor asked us to forego all artificial resuscitation. It may then last for
years, he explained. Mom agreed. No suffering.
We kept vigil. Day and
night. One night, while I was sleeping on the bench in the corridor, a junior
doctor, uninformed, started resuscitation. By then, dad was in a coma. When I
awoke, I panicked. Dad was entombed in equipment, cylinders, pipes and meters.
I called our doctor. We had agreed on letting him pass silently into the night.
You be
the judge. What should the doctor have done? He refused to withdraw
the tubes. Tantamount to murder, he explained. No matter what, it could not be
done.
This is where a ‘Living
Will’ comes handy. A bit of a misnomer, the Will is not alive. It is a set of
instructions drawn up, in case of an emergency, usually a medical situation.
Means and methods to be set in motion when the ‘testator’ is not able to care
for himself. While a Will ‘speaks from the grave’, a Living Will speaks when
the deponent, while still alive, is unable to speak for himself.
A Living Will must be
carefully drawn up. Think of everything possible. Where is the money to come
from? How much is to be spent? Who will have access to it and how is it to be
allocated? What of Mediclaim? Will the insurer play ball? Is your doctor in the
know and has he been consulted on the medical costs and possibilities of care?
Most importantly, does the Will specify, if so desired, that artificial means
must not be used under any circumstance? Have you indemnified the person whom
you have entrusted to ‘execute’ the Living Will? He could face a lot of flak
just by following your instructions. Is there more than one agent to do your
bidding? Always wiser to appoint a second line of defence, an arm’s length
person. A close relative may be involved in the same accident as the
deponent.
Then there are religious
rituals that one may need, when close to death. These need be detailed, priests
named. If one has donated one’s organs, someone needs to inform the hospital or
agency when the end arrives. Eyes, especially, have to be recovered
immediately, to gift their sight to others.
There is always the
possibility that the hospital, fearing legal reprisals, may not follow your
instructions. Make sure that the matter is cleared beforehand with the hospital
and its lawyers. Maybe leave a copy with the doctors or the hospital management.
Above all, consult your
lawyer, especially one who understands the special and specific implications.
Have you signed the document? The law is silent on the need for witnesses, but
it is best to get the attestation done. Take due care. Dad was put off the
ventilator when he stabilised. He passed away one night, two months later,
peacefully in his sleep.
For those who may want to
prepare a Living Will, let us pray that it is never put to use. Also remember,
it has no legal sanctity as yet, but it acts as a guide for your loved ones and
your doctors on what to do, if you are no longer capable of spelling it out
yourself.
Courtesy: Moneylife