Who is eligible to have a durable power of attorney for health care?

You must be at least 18 years old, and you must understand you are giving another person power to make certain decisions for you should you become unable to make them. What is the person to whom I give decision-making power called? That person is known as your patient advocate. When can the patient advocate act in my behalf? Your patient advocate can make decisions for you only when you become unable to participate in medical treatment decisions yourself. Until that time, you make your own decisions directly. If you choose to give your patient advocate power to make decisions about mental health treatment, your patient advocate can only act if you cannot give informed consent to mental health treatment. How might I become unable to participate in medical or mental health decisions? You might have a temporary loss of ability to make or communicate decisions if, for example, you had a stroke or were knocked unconscious in a car accident. You might suffer permanent loss through a ...  more