Racine County, WI

Advanced Directives

Advance directives refer to tools that help you live the life you prefer when your abilities change due to illness or accident. They help determine your Plan B and what could come after that. The conversation around creating these tools is often what is most important, as this enables others to know your feelings about the type of care you want to receive and the life you want to live.

Information

Power of Attorney Infographic
State of Wisconsin Forms
Guardianship Support Center (Information about all Advance Directives)

Resources

There are several tools available to start or facilitate conversations about what is truly important to family and other loved ones:

The Conversation Project workbooks
Five Wishes from Aging with Dignity
Stanford Medicine’s Letter Project
Go Wish from the Coda Alliance
Tools to Manage End of Life Care from Compassion and Choices
Advance Directives - Wisconsin DHS
Life Plan for the Life Span - American Psychological Association
Family Estate Planning In Wisconsin (UW Extension) Download only
For Caregivers to plan for times when they might not be available to provide care: Our Plan B
Planning for the Future- A Guidebook to being Prepared

Future Planning tools available to help disabled adults and those transitioning to adulthood.

• Contact the ADRC for transition planning information, Power of Attorney for Healthcare or Power of Attorney for finance forms, and general information about Guardianship. The ADRC can also discuss long -term care programs
• See the ARC’s Center for Future Planning at https://futureplanning.thearc.org They provide reliable information and practical assistance and tools to individuals with I/DD, family members and friends as well as others. To better support families and individuals with I/DD in future planning, Build Your Plan® is a tool that enables families to create accounts and begin to build their plans within the Center. Always keep the person with I/DD’s interests, preferences, and skills as the main focus of the plan.
• Sibling Leadership Network http://siblingleadership.org/ where the Wisconsin Chapter offers workshops where adult siblings and the disabled individual plan together for future wishes and needs.
• Families are encouraged to talk to a knowledgeable attorney and/or the Guardianship Support Center (GSC) at 1-855- 409-9410 or email guardian@gwaar.org before moving forward with a guardianship decision. They also have information about “Supported Decision Making. They can be found at: http://www.gwaar.org/.

Remember that the goal of any future planning is always to protect the individual’s rights and ensure choices.