advance directive

Definition of advance directive

: a legal document (such as a living will) signed by a competent person to provide guidance for medical and health-care decisions (such as the termination of life support or organ donation) in the event the person becomes incompetent to make such decisions

Examples of advance directive in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Despite existing in some form since the 1970s, only 37% of Americans report having formalized their wishes through an advance directive. — L.s. Dugdale, STAT, "Rethinking Black Friday to include end-of-life conversations," 27 Nov. 2020 That situation isn’t easily addressed in advance directive. — Julie Washington, cleveland, "‘I guide families along a difficult and dangerous journey’: Faces From the Front Lines of Coronavirus," 25 Nov. 2020 Many clients are concerned about how their advance directive, also known as a living will or physician’s directive, works in times like these. — Houston Chronicle, "Elder Law: How well is your estate plan prepared for the pandemic?," 21 Aug. 2020 Only 25% have documented their end-of-life wishes in the form of an advance directive, and less than 20% discussed those wishes with their healthcare provider. — Jessica Gold, Time, "It's Time to Get Serious About End-of-Life Care for High-Risk Coronavirus Patients," 30 Mar. 2020 For example, residents at Massachusetts General Hospital decided to complete advance directives and assign health care proxies during their shifts at work. — Jessica Gold, Time, "It's Time to Get Serious About End-of-Life Care for High-Risk Coronavirus Patients," 30 Mar. 2020 The need to have clear advance directives and discussions about life support is critical and realistic for all of us always, but especially now. — Jessica Gold, Time, "It's Time to Get Serious About End-of-Life Care for High-Risk Coronavirus Patients," 30 Mar. 2020 Living wills are also called health care directives and advance directives. — Julie Washington, cleveland, "Why everyone needs a living will and health care power of attorney: Health Matters," 8 Mar. 2020 The guest speaker is a local attorney who will discuss living trusts, wills, advance directives and power of attorney. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "DAR chapter receives Proclamations for Constitution Week," 30 Sep. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'advance directive.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about advance directive

Dictionary Entries near advance directive

advanced degree

advanced fry

advanced in age/years

Statistics for advance directive

Last Updated

2 Dec 2020

Cite this Entry

“Advance directive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/advance%20directive. Accessed 24 Jan. 2021.

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for advance directive

advance directive

noun

ad·vance di·rec·tive | \ əd-ˈvan(t)s-də-ˈrek-tiv, -dī-

Medical Definition of advance directive

: a legal document (as a living will) signed by a living competent person in order to provide guidance for medical and health-care decisions (as the termination of life support and organ donation) in the event that the person becomes incompetent to make such decisions

advance directive

noun

Legal Definition of advance directive

: a document (as a living will or health care power of attorney) in which a person expresses his or her wishes regarding medical treatment in the event of incapacity