How will a Health and Welfare Lasting Power of Attorney help you? 

Currently if you would like to ensure that your wishes will be taken into account in your future medical treatment you should put in place a Health and Welfare Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA). This sets out your preferences which will be considered in the event that you lose mental capacity.  

Without a Health and Welfare LPA, there is a greater chance that your doctors and ultimately the Courts will decide on your medical treatment based on their assessment of what is in your best interests.  

Whilst the loss of mental capacity is often seen as a gradual process, in reality it can happen to anyone of us at any time, with consequences for loved ones.  

Things to consider when preparing your Health & Welfare LPA 

• Choose your attorneys wisely; they can be different to those managing your property and finances, and they could make end of life decisions which take into account your wishes. Consider if your potential attorneys have any issues with money or their own health which detracts from their ability to make appropriate decisions in a timely manner. 

• If your attorneys are not good at communicating with you and others, this may affect their ability to make good decisions on your behalf.   

• Will your attorneys have the time and the ability required to attend care meetings and other daily activities on your behalf? 

• It is useful to have more than one attorney, consider their appointment on a joint and several basis (where any one of the attorneys can act on your behalf if for any reason the others are unable to do so). Think carefully about appointing replacement attorneys in the event that your original attorneys are unable to act.  

• Consider obtaining legal advice when preparing your LPA as any errors require you to resubmit the LPA with another registration fee, and the delay in registration could immediately impact your personal health and welfare 

• Plan ahead and prepare your LPA to set out clearly what your wishes are in relation to major decisions about your health and welfare to ensure your wishes are adhered to in a timely manner in the future.  

If you need legal assistance in the preparation of your Lasting Powers of Attorney or have any questions concerning your existing powers of attorney, please speak to our legal team who will be very happy to help.