April 8, 2008, Low Moor, VA – Alleghany Regional Hospital will participate in National Healthcare Decision Day on April 16 by offering free advance directives forms and information on living wills and naming an agent for health care decisions. Hospital representatives will be on site to answer questions and offer assistance with completing forms in the Main Lobby from 9:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. Advance directives will be available for both Virginia and West Va. residents. As an added service, any completed Advance Directive will be put on file in the hospital’s medical records department.

What is an advance directive? All adults can benefit from thinking about what their healthcare choices would be if they are unable to speak for themselves.  These decisions can be written down in an advance directive so that others know what they are. 

Advance directives come in two main forms: A "healthcare power of attorney" (or "proxy" or "agent" or "surrogate") documents the person you select to be your voice for your healthcare decisions if you cannot speak for yourself.  A "living will" documents what kinds of medical treatments you would or would not want at the end of life.

National Healthcare Decisions Day is an initiative to encourage patients to express their wishes regarding healthcare and for providers and facilities to respect those wishes, whatever they may be.

"As a result of National Healthcare Decisions Day, many more Americans can be expected to have thoughtful conversations about their healthcare decisions and complete reliable advance directives to make their wishes known," said Nathan A. Kottkamp, chair of the National Healthcare Decision Day initiative. "Fewer families and healthcare providers will have to struggle with making difficult healthcare decisions in the absence of guidance from the patient; and healthcare providers and facilities will be better equipped to address advance healthcare planning issues before a crisis and be better able to honor patient wishes when the time comes to do so."