Accidents are a sad fact of life. Statistics from The Ranch suggest that a fatality will occur once every 48,000 jumps, and that an injury will happen roughly every 2,500 jumps. Many of those injuries are minor, but at least a few will be life threatening. While none of us believe that we will be hurt, each of us should have a plan to deal with serious injury or death. That plan should be designed to help medical authorities meet our immediate needs, help friends and family make medical decisions on our behalf, and should define treatment and support options that we want to receive if the injury proves to be fatal. It uncomfortable to think about this topic when we are active and healthy, but a well considered plan to deal with emergencies will improve our own care, and make dealing with the stress of the accident easier for those we love. Preparing for a critical accident shouldn't take more than a couple of hours and can be handled at home with official forms available on the web.
Each skydiver is expected to complete a waiver at the beginning of every season. That document includes space for an emergency contact, and a place to list any medical infirmities. This is important information that will be made available to medical personnel in the event you are not conscious. The space for infirmities should include anything you think medical personnel will need to know about you. Allergies are often listed here, as are chronic medical conditions such as asthma, diabetes, and cardiac conditions. It is also a good idea to list medicines that you are taking on a regular basis because they might interact with drugs the hospital may wish to use. Some people prefer to keep this kind of information strictly confidential. If you choose not to include medical information of your waiver it is critical that you wear a Medic Alert style tag. These tags can be worn on the wrist, ankle, or around the neck, and have space for quick listings of infirmities. Some tags simply list a toll free phone number and a patient ID that will allow authorized medical staff to retrieve you health history in confidence.
Selecting an Emergency Contact
The emergency contact you list should be somebody you trust, and who will be available when you are jumping. Often a family member is the best choice for this position, but some people prefer to list a close friend instead. Whomever you choose should be level headed in a crisis, familiar with your past medical history, and should be willing to make decisions on your behalf. This person should also have access to your address book so other close friends and relatives can be quickly notified.
Once you arrive at the hospital you can expect emergency care specialists to do everything possible to save your life, and to stabilize your condition. Sometimes injuries are so serious that you may not be able to communicate your wishes. In that case, doctors will try to reach your designated emergency contact. This person will be able to advise the doctors of your wishes, but formal decision making usually requires a written document that legally designates a person to make those decisions for you. If you have not officially designated somebody to make decisions on your behalf, the hospital staff will make the choices for you, and sometimes these choices may conflict with your actual wishes, your religious believes, or with the informal requests of your emergency contact.
It is easy to officially designate a friend or family member so that person can formally make decisions on your behalf. There are two simple components to the process including the designation of a health care agent, and creating an advance directive. Either element will help by itself, but together a health care agent and advance directive ensure that your wishes will be recognized within the medical community.
The designation of a health care agent is simply a matter of selecting a person who you would like to make decisions on your behalf, and then recording the choice on an official form that is recognized by the health care community and state government. A simple designation of a health care agent allows that person to make medical decisions on your behalf, but not other decisions such as financial or childcare decision. An additional form, often called a "Durable Power of Attorney" should be used if you would like your designee to manage your non-medical affairs too.
Advance Directives
An advance directive can be a complicated document because it allows you to specify how you would like to be treated under a wide variety of conditions. The advance directive allows you to define when you would like to have aggressive treatments stopped, when you would like to discontinue pain medication, and when you would like to end artificial means of life support, such as a feeding tube. A designated health care agent can make many of these decisions if you are unable to do so, but it helps if you have thought through the process and left written instructions that clearly define your wishes.
The forms needed to designate a health care agent and create an advance directive are easy to fill out, but some people choose to handle the task with a lawyer. Professional assistance is not necessary to complete these documents, but a good lawyer will have been through the process many times, and may be able to add other legal documents such as a will, durable power of attorney, or estate plan. While the designation of a health care agent allows the selected person to make only medical decisions for you, a more general power of attorney will allow that person to handle your financial concerns and childcare issues. Many people have free basic legal services available as an employee benefit through their job. Sometimes these services are covered under a specific legal services plan, and sometimes they are included in a comprehensive employee assistance plan that covers other important things like counseling services. If you work for a large corporation, it is a good idea to ask your human resources department if you have legal services available as an employee benefit. You may also have legal services included as a benefit of an existing credit card. Some of the elite cards include this service free or for an additional annual charge, while others offer a legal services plan that provides some services such as estate planning or document review at no charge, and discounts on other services.
If you choose not to use a lawyer, the documents for designating a health care agent and advance directive are available as free downloads on the web, and are legally binding if signed and witnessed according to state law. The documents will include conforming signature areas for your state of residence.
Completing the forms to designate a health care agent and specify advance directives is a difficult emotional process that will force you to think through some very unpleasant scenarios. Ideally, you will have a chance to consider your options and discuss your desires with your health care agent and family members. Once completed, the documents should be filed where they will be available to your family, and you should review them periodically. You are always free to change your wishes and create a new advance directive, or even change your choice of a health care agent.
As skydivers we face greater risk than most people, but accidents and illness can strike anybody. Preparing for a critical end of life incident is important for each of us, and will help your family and friends to deal with difficult decisions we all hope they never need to make.
Obtaining the Needed Forms
Forms for designating a health care agent and advance directive are available from all hospitals, and on the following web sites. The forms are state specific, so be sure to select the forms for your state of residence.
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http://www.nhpco.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageid=3965&openpage=3965 This is a hospice care provider. It offers general guidelines and links to state specific forms. This site requires a simple registration with your name and email address. |
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http://uslivingwillregistry.com/default.htm This is a free medical registry service. The site offers general information and access to state specific forms at no charge, and without any required registration. |
- Tom Buchanan S&TA