InsaneJournal

Surrogacy, The Clever Way
The person who the principal is authorizing to make medical decisions in their behalf is called the surrogate. Surrogate is defined as "someone who takes the place of another". A Designation of Health Care Surrogate form may also name a backup surrogate in case the first named surrogate is unable or unwilling to act in behalf of the principal. The surrogate cannot make medical decisions or consent to medical treatments on behalf of the principal until the principal is no longer able to make their own health care decisions and consent to medical treatments. The surrogate's authority ends when the principal regains the ability to make their own medical decisions and consent to medical treatments.

When a surrogate is notified by the health care facility that they are now authorized to act on behalf of the principal due to the principal's present condition and the surrogate is not the husband or wife of the principal, the surrogate must notify the principal's spouse or adult children of the principal's designation of health care surrogate. The surrogate may also begin to make health care decisions on behalf of the principal now. If the principal had previously informed the surrogate as to what types of treatments he or she would or would not consent to under particular circumstances, the surrogate should make their decisions based on the principal's wishes. If the surrogate should have to make a decision about something that was not discussed with the principal, the surrogate should make their decision considering the principal's best interest when deciding. Before the surrogate makes a decision that was not discussed with the principal beforehand, the surrogate may ask for medical information and advice from the principal's health care providers and have access to the principal's medical records. The surrogate not only has the authority to consent to medical treatments for the principal, the surrogate may also decline suggested medical treatments or ask that medical treatments being administered to the principal be stopped or removed as well. The surrogate may also request that the principal's medical records be shared with another medical facility so that the surrogate could get a second opinion from a different physician and even request that the principal be transferred to a different health care facility.

A Florida Living Will is a witnessed written declaration that is voluntarily signed by a competent adult. A Living Will legally provides the person's consent in the form of written instructions expressing their desire to withhold, withdraw, or continue life-prolonging procedures if they are unable to give their attending physician informed consent by intentionally communicating their wishes themselves.

In a living will, a person may choose not to have any life-prolonging procedures applied at all, or only at a particular stage of their medical condition. As an example, a person may direct in their Living Will to have life-prolonging medical procedures applied if they have a terminal condition or an end stage condition, but that life-prolonging procedures that will artificially prolong the process of dying be removed if they are diagnosed as being in a persistent vegetative state.

To determine the person's medical state, the attending physician and a second physician have to conduct separate examinations of the person before life-prolonging medical procedures may be withheld or withdrawn as directed by the person in their Living Will.

Regardless of the instructions contained in the person's Living Will, the attending physician would still be allowed to administer medication or perform a medical procedure that would provide comfort to the person and to alleviate their pain. This is called palliative care.

A person may also designate another person to act as their surrogate to carry out the person's directions made in their Living Will. If the person did not name a person to act as their surrogate, the attending physician would follow the directions the person made in their Living Will.

A person who has completed a Living Will needs to provide a copy of it to their attending physician and their health care facility so it can be included in their medical records.

florida surrogate