What Is A Living Will? Here's Everything You Need To Know!

The living will has now been enshrined into Maltese law, giving Maltese citizens the right to outline what care and treatments they would not wish to receive in the event of future medical conditions.

Here’s everything you need to know about how a living will works:

This is a written statement of your medical wishes in serious situations, such as:

• Severe illness
• Unconsciousness
• End-of-life care

It only comes into effect if you cannot make decisions for yourself.

A living will covers whether you want lifesaving treatment like CPR, the use of medical equipment like ventilators or feeding tubes, and how aggressively do you want your pain to be treated, even if it shortens life.

It does not appoint someone to make decisions for you or cover any financial or non-medical decisions.

The purpose of a living will is to ease the burden off your family members in the case of a medical situation, while also minting your right to choose how to be treated, even when you cannot advocate for yourself.

Parliamentary Secretary for Reforms and Equality Rebecca Buttigieg explained that the “living will” law establishes specific medical conditions under which advance directives can apply.

These directives must be made following an informed decision, with the support of a medical professional, and formally registered before a notary.

#MaltaDaily