Elder Abuse – Nolan Elder Law and Estate Planning, LLC

Know Your Mom’s Rights if You Suspect Elder Abuse

August 16, 2021

Elder abuse includes physical, mental, emotional, and financial practices that cause harm.

- Can an Elder Law Attorney End Bickering About Your Mom’s Care?
  July 7, 2021Elder Law Vestavia, AL: Bickering Over Care You and your brother are doing everything you can for your mom. She has Alzheimer’s and is entering the latter stages of this disease. No matter what you do, her siblings complain about your every choice. They won’t help out, but they also question everything you do and say you’re not making the best decisions. This isn’t an unusual situation for families to be in. Disagreements over an aging parent’s care are common and can be incredibly frustrating. Did you know that an elder care attorney can help end these disagreements? You’ll have the tools you need to make decisions without becoming frustrated. Two Legal Documents That Back Your Decisions Talk to an elder law attorney about two specific documents. Your mom needs to set both of these up. The first is an advance directive for healthcare. This legal document is sometimes called a healthcare proxy. It’s a legal directive that tells people what medical care you want and don’t want if you become incapacitated on a temporary or permanent basis. An advance directive is used to inform doctors if your mom wants medical interventions like feeding tubes, ventilators, or other life-saving measures. It goes hand-in-hand with a medical power of attorney. With a medical power of attorney, your parent names an “agent” to act as a representative for medical decisions. If your parent cannot communicate his or her wishes after a stroke, car accident, or other medical situation, the agent would make decisions for them using the advance directive as a guide. How a Power of Attorney Helps One area where a medical power of attorney is very helpful is after an Alzheimer’s diagnosis. While your mom is perfectly capable of making decisions at that moment, months or years of cognitive decline will change that. As her memory goes, she needs someone to make appointments, ask questions of the doctor, make medication decisions, and decide on things like medical tests, pain administration, and DNR enforcement. As long as she names a medical power of attorney agent, she’s protected. Talk to your mom about her wishes. Make sure you have answers to important questions like “Does your mom have any metal pins or plates in her body?” or “Is she allergic to anything?” If there’s a medical emergency, you’ll need to know these answers. Make sure your mom talks to an elder law attorney to have an advance directive and power of attorney documents drawn up. With those documents in hand, no one can argue with you as you’ll be following your mom’s wishes. Arrange your free consultation today to learn more. If you or a loved need assistance with Elder Law in Vestavia, AL contact Nolan Elder Law & Estate Planning today. (205) 390-0101 ...

Tag: Elder Abuse

Know Your Mom’s Rights if You Suspect Elder Abuse