but that ain't what this is about.
and I'm not gonna get into it.

This is about human error & being prepared.
We make 'em, in family, with friends, and skilled educated experienced professionals do too.
Coz they have kids and spouses and life surprises that may distract them in your time of need.

Be a girl scout about your health if you're of a certain age.
A little presearch is a good thing.
You pick the age.

Have a cardio & pulmo doc in you contacts, preferably 2.
Coz doctors are people & people make mistakes and take vacations.
And the ones in the ER may be interns at 2am.

Say you live in an area with lots of medical professionals and figure you'll always be covered.
The reason there are lots of med types where you are is coz there a lots of possible clients.
Having a doctors name might come in handy.

Everyone needs an advocate, coz you can't always be your own.
Think about questions you might have in an emergency.
Put that in your info. Important medical history, if you have any. Medications, allergies ....

If you have other family history that might require other medical types, have them in your contacts as well.
Make a copy for the fridge magnet. Put a copy in your glove compartment. On your dogs leash.
Your sib who lives 3000 miles away or your doctor "back home" are not a great SOS contacts.

For those of you with modern iPhones, I understand there is an SOS call feature.
That right there might be enough for me to change, although I hear tell the Pixels do too.

yes, we will all take a last journey.
But there's no reason to take it early or unpleasantly if another question or opinion might spark other ideas.
No one wants to be a pest with a medical professional, but "oh f**k" is no way to leave this place.


sorry for the rant, but I couldn't find a nice old car to post today.

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!#$@@$#!

never do yesterday or today what you can put off til tomorrow or next year.





Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 05/11/2022 06:28PM by Fritz.

Sorry for your loss.

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Roswell, GA (Atlanta suburb)

:-( and thanks

So sorry for your loss and thank you for the PSA. It's a really good reminder.

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JoeM

In a similar vein - from a friend whose spouse had a severe stroke - and lost the ability to communicate effectively. Something everyone should consider:

Reposting this information for those of you that don’t have your affairs in order
Make sure all bank accounts have direct beneficiaries. The beneficiary need only go to the bank with your death certificate and an ID of their own.
- TOD = Transfer On Death deed if you own a home. Completing this document and filing it with your county saves your heirs THOUSANDS. This document allows you to transfer ownership of your home to your designee. All they need to do is take their ID and your death certificate to the county building and the deed is signed over. Doing this will avoid the home having to go through probate.
- Living Will: Allows one to put in writing exactly what you want done in the event you cannot speak for yourself when it comes to healthcare decisions
- Durable Power of Attorney: Allows one to designate a person to make legal decisions if one is no longer competent to do so.
- Power of Attorney for Healthcare: This document allows one to designate someone to make healthcare decisions for their person.
- Last Will and Testament: Designates to whom personal belongings will go too.
- Funeral Planning Declaration: allows one to say exactly one’s wishes as far as disposition of the body and the services.
- If the above documents are done, at least in MI and Indiana, you can AVOID probate. If all the above is not done, you have to open an estate account at the bank. All money that doesn’t have direct beneficiaries goes into this account. You have to have an attorney to open the estate account. The attorney also has to publicize your passing in the paper etc., to allow anyone to make a claim on your property. - It’s a complete PAIN.
- Make a list of all banks and account numbers, all investment institutions with account numbers, lists of credit cards, utility accounts, etc. Leave clear instructions as to how and when these things are paid. Make sure heirs knows where life insurance policies are located.
- Make 100% sure SOMEONE knows your Apple ID, bank ID account logins and passwords!!!! (Mom had a little binder with all of this! )
- Make sure you have titles for all vehicles, campers, etc!
- MOST IMPORTANTLY!!!! - Talk with those closest to you and make all your wishes KNOWN. Talk to those whom you’ve designated, as well as those close to you whom you did not designate. - Do this to explain why your decisions were made and to avoid any lingering questions or hurt feelings.
We were fortunate that dad had almost everything in order. A huge blessing g to us was that he had pre planned and prepaid his funeral just a couple of days after mom died. Sadly, he had planned on doing a TOD deed for the house the Monday after he died. Had he been able to complete that, it would have saved thousands in attorney fees and we could have avoided having to probate the estate.
Hope this helps! Hope this lights a spark to encourage all my friends and family to take care of these things to make it easier for those we’ll leave behind!
*** I am NOT an attorney. The above is all simply lessons that I’ve learned on my own. Of course only you can make decisions for yourself! My hope is that the above list at least helps you start an important conversation with your loved ones and an attorney that can help you complete all the necessary steps. ***

Good stuff, folks. Thanks. But sincere condolences for your grief. Sadly, I'm very familiar with loss of late.

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Hurts like a bastid...

Thanks for the reminder Fritz, and I'm sorry about your friend. And kudos to vicrock's advice as well.

So sorry for your loss….

and what vicrock said as well. extremely important.

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!#$@@$#!

never do yesterday or today what you can put off til tomorrow or next year.

At the very least have an ER package - a one-gallon ziplock bag with photocopies of insurance/medicare/Drivers License, a sheet with all your doctors, their specialty and contact number, an up to date list of all medication including dosage and when you take it, copies of living will, POA, and an original of a DNR if you have one.

You can hand it to the Ambulance crew or have it with you in the ER. (I kept two for my mom - one for the ambulance and the other I kept with me)

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“No persons are more frequently wrong, than those who will not admit they are wrong.” -- François de La Rochefoucauld

"Those who cannot accept the past are condemned to revise it." -- Geo. Mathias

The German word for contraceptive is “Schwangerschaftsverhütungsmittel”. By the time you finished saying that, it’s too late

Sorry for your loss. Thank you for the advice.

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Saint Cloud, Minnesota, where the weather is wonderful even when it isn't.

.....most accounts....mutual fund, stock account, etc. can be registered as 'TOD' Transfer On Death....it will bypass probate if one doesn't have a will.....

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_____________________________________

I reject your reality and substitute my own!

ER package is an excellent method.

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!#$@@$#!

never do yesterday or today what you can put off til tomorrow or next year.