Which term describes documents stating a client's end-of-life care preferences?

Which term describes documents stating a client's end-of-life care preferences?

• A. Advance Directives
• B. Informed Consent
• C. Communicable Diseases
• D. Good Samaritan Law

Answer: (A)

Advance directives are documents that capture a patient’s wishes for medical treatment if they become unable to communicate. They typically spell out preferences about resuscitation, life-sustaining measures, and the setting in which care should be given, and they may name a surrogate decision-maker. This is the best answer because it directly describes the written expressions of end-of-life care preferences that guide decisions when a person can’t speak for themselves, upholding the person’s autonomy and helping clinicians and families know what the patient would want. Informed consent, on the other hand, concerns agreeing to a specific medical procedure after being informed, not a blanket statement of future care preferences. Good Samaritan Law relates to legal protection for accidental helpers in emergencies, and communicable diseases refer to the spread of illnesses, neither of which describe a patient’s end-of-life directives.

Advance directives are documents that capture a patient’s wishes for medical treatment if they become unable to communicate. They typically spell out preferences about resuscitation, life-sustaining measures, and the setting in which care should be given, and they may name a surrogate decision-maker. This is the best answer because it directly describes the written expressions of end-of-life care preferences that guide decisions when a person can’t speak for themselves, upholding the person’s autonomy and helping clinicians and families know what the patient would want. Informed consent, on the other hand, concerns agreeing to a specific medical procedure after being informed, not a blanket statement of future care preferences. Good Samaritan Law relates to legal protection for accidental helpers in emergencies, and communicable diseases refer to the spread of illnesses, neither of which describe a patient’s end-of-life directives.