After Death Decisions Guide

After the death of a loved one, family and friends are often left with some tough decisions. You can help ease the pain and anxiety by making your wishes – about burial, autopsy, and organ donations – clear in advance.

Did you know?

• More than 68,000 patients are on the national organ transplant waiting list. Each day, 13 of them will die because the organs they need have not been donated. Every 16 minutes, a new name will be added to the waiting list.

• To be transplanted, organs must receive blood until they are removed from the body of the donor. Therefore, it may be necessary to place the donor on a breathing machine temporarily or provide other organ-sustaining treatment.

• If you are older or seriously ill, you may or may not have organs or tissue suitable for transplant. Doctors evaluate the options at or near the time of death with your family and/or healthcare agent.

• The body of an organ donor can still be shown and buried after death.

What organs and tissues can be donated?

• Eight vital organs can be donated: heart, kidneys (2), pancreas, lungs (2), liver, and intestines. Hands and faces have also recently been added to the list.

• Tissue: cornea, skin, heart valves, bone, blood vessels, and connective tissue.

• Bone marrow and stem cells, umbilical cord blood, and peripheral blood stem cells (PBSC) can also be donated.

Questions to think about:

1. Would you consider donating viable organs for transplant? If so, which ones?

2. Would you consider donating viable tissues for transplant? If so, which ones?

   If you answered yes for either of the above, be sure to consider writing this into your Healthcare Advance Directive. You may also fill out an organ donor card or register as an organ donor when you renew your driver’s license. Be sure to tell your healthcare agent and loved ones. Make sure they will support your wishes. Even with any organ donor card, hospitals may ask your healthcare agent or family to sign a consent form.

3. If you do not donate organs or tissue, you may choose to donate your whole body for medical research or education. Would you consider doing this?
   
   If you answer yes, you should contact a medical institution to which you are interested in making this donation. Medical schools, research facilities, and other agencies need to study bodies to gain greater understanding of disease mechanisms in humans. But, this kind of donation must be accepted by the medical institution. Note that total body donation is not an option if you also choose to be an organ or tissue donor.

4. Would you consider agreeing to an autopsy? (Autopsies, done after death, are used for diagnostic and research purposes. The body can still be shown and buried.)

Our law firm has the experience and the expertise to establish a Durable Power of Attorney that best fits your needs. Contact us or request a consultation to learn more.