Legal Issues
It's never too early to start talking with elders about quality-of-life and end-of-life issues. Having a thorough understanding of your elder's beliefs, values and wishes may ultimately help you make tough decisions. It could also reduce the potential for conflict with the elder and other caregivers involved.
Putting that understanding in writing is also vital. As this chapter explains, most important decisions concerning finances, health care, and end-of-life care require legal documents (health care proxies, living wills, and so on). So before a crisis arises, find a legal service that specializes in elder planning to prepare the relevant documents. Without them, you may need a court proceeding to establish guardianship (or conservatorship) when and if an elder loses his or her capacity to make financial or health care decisions. It's also likely that the same legal service can advise you on setting up wills and trusts, as well as ways to protect your elder from financial or physical abuse. Although this kind of preparation costs money, the time and stress you save long-term can make this a truly wise investment.
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