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Sharing your wishes
Who should know about your Life Care Plan
The best way to make your life care plan known is to share your wishes for future health care with the people in your life. Share it with your health care agent, other loved ones, friends, roommates, and Kaiser Permanente.
As many people as possible should be informed about your life care plan. Your life care plan can only be acted upon if people know about it. Share your plan verbally and in writing.
Also, keep any documents, such as your “Advance Health Care Directive (AHCD),” in a place that is easy for you and others to access. Give a copy to your health care agent, your family members, and your physician.
Why share your plan with others
Once you complete your Life Care Plan
- Make a copy for yourself and keep it where it can be easily found. You may also want to let a family member know where this copy is.
- Give a copy to your doctor. Discuss the contents of your AHCD with your doctor to ensure that he or she understands all your wishes. Your record is available at any Kaiser Permanente medical office or hospital.
Sharing your values
Having thought about what you would want for future health care, the next step is sharing your values and healthcare wishes with your agent.
It is also helpful to share your thought process when it comes to decision-making about health care. Sharing your goals of care and underlying beliefs will help guide your agent if they ever need to speak on your behalf.
A conversation about values is very intimate, especially as it relates to how you want to live the rest of your life. We are influenced by so many things; from, personal experiences, to family member’s values and wishes, to religious values and even the media. There are no “right answers” when it comes to your values. They are personal to you.
Before you start sharing your values and goals of care with your agent, it is helpful to be in a comfortable place without distractions and to allow for plenty of time. Your agent may want to ask you questions so that they can explore your values and beliefs with you. Sharing your values with your agent will help them know you well so that they are able to communicate on your behalf if they ever need to.
The documents and processes that make your Life Care Plan legal vary by state. Select your region to find your state’s documents.
There are a number of different documents or processes you can use which are legally approved by the state of Colorado. Ideally, we would like for you to complete an Advance Health Care Directive (AHCD). Please make sure that any legal document you complete is shared with both your health care agent and Kaiser Permanente.
An Advance Health Care Directive is an official document in which you can specify your values and health care wishes. By indicating your health care agent and signing the Advanced Health Care Directive, your health care agent becomes your legally appointed representative in the state of Colorado. If you would like the document to serve as an Advance Directive (includes preference for care) in addition to assigning a Health Care Agent, it must be signed by two witnesses. Notary seal is optional.
- Advance Health Care Directive for Colorado - English (pdf)
- Advance Health Care Directive for Colorado - Spanish (pdf)
Option 1: Sign your AHCD with two witnesses
- Sign your AHCD in the presence of two witnesses or have each of your witnesses acknowledge your signature (this merely means they need to look at your signature and acknowledge that it came from you).
- Neither witness can be related to you (by blood, marriage or adoption) and neither witness can be entitled to any part of your estate.
- Neither witness can be your appointed health care agent.
- Neither witness can be your health care provider or the employee of the health care facility in which you are the patient.
- You will sign on one page, and the two witnesses will sign on another page.
OR
Notary Public
Sign your AHCD in the presence of a Notary Public. The Notary Public will complete the appropriate page with his or her signature and official seal.