• All competent adult patients and emancipated minors have the right to self-determination in making medical treatment decisions.
• All competent adult and emancipated minor patients shall be provided with written information about state statues and case law concerning an Advance Directive upon admission or as soon as practicable after admission to Holy Cross Hospital. These documents shall set forth an individual’s rights under state law (both statutory and as recognized by state courts) to make decisions concerning medical care; including the right to accept or refuse medical or surgical treatment and the right to formulate an Advance Directive.
• An entry is to be made in each competent patient’s file as to whether or not the patient has completed an Advance Directive.
• Holy Cross Hospital shall educate its staff and community about Advance Directives.
• Patient educational materials shall be distributed to patients as soon as practicable.
• Holy Cross Hospital and its staff physicians shall honor, respect and comply with a patient’s express wishes and medical treatment decisions as set forth in the Living Will, Durable Power-of-Attorney or other Advance Directive.
• If a staff physician cannot honor, respect or comply with the patient’s wishes or medical treatment decisions, the physician shall inform the patient of this. At the patient’s request, we will find another physician who can and will treat the patient (with the patient’s consent) and who will honor, respect and comply with the patient’s Advance Directive. The original staff physician will then withdraw as the patient’s physician.
• No conditions for giving care or otherwise discriminating against a patient because the patient has or doesn’t have an Advance Directive shall be allowed.
• Patients are presumed to be competent. It will be documented when a patient is clearly incompetent or incapacitated from making medical treatment decisions. In that event, reasonable efforts should be made to contact members of the patient’s family to determine if the patient has completed an Advance Directive.
  

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