What happens during a medical emergency when you cannot speak for yourself? During a medical emergency, if you are unable to communicate your wishes, healthcare providers will generally follow standard emergency procedures to save your life.

Understanding the Michigan DNR Procedure Act is essential for making informed choices about your medical care. By better understanding the Michigan DNR Procedure Act, individuals can ensure their healthcare preferences are clearly communicated and legally recognized, providing peace of mind for themselves and their loved ones.

However, if you have specific wishes about what medical treatments you do or do not want, and want to ensure your medical wishes are respected during critical health situations an Advance Directive, such as a DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) or MI-POST (Michigan Physician Orders for Scope of Treatment), is a crucial document that you must have. These documents provide clear instructions to healthcare providers and loved ones, reducing the burden of difficult decision-making during emergencies.

Here are 12 useful facts about the Michigan DNR Procedure Act that highlight its significance and the steps involved in setting up these vital directives. This is a summary of the 8-page legislative document.

1. Who May Execute:

An individual over age 18 and of sound mind may execute a DNR order. In certain circumstances, a patient advocate, guardian, parents of a minor, or other authorized person may also execute a DNR on behalf of an individual.

2. Avoiding Resuscitation Measures:

A properly executed DNR order, if known and followed, prevents resuscitation measures such as cardiac compression, cardiac resuscitation medication, intubation, ventilation, and defibrillation for a person outside of a hospital setting who is no longer breathing and has no heartbeat, as determined by a health professional.

3. Exclusions in Resuscitation:

"Resuscitation" does not include the Heimlich maneuver or other measures to remove an obstructing object.

4. Required Signatures:

The DNR order must be signed by the attending physician, the patient, or their authorized representative, and two non-family member witnesses who cannot be a spouse, child, grandchild, sibling, or presumptive heir.

5. Definition of Hospital:

Under state statute, a "hospital" includes any facility offering inpatient, overnight care and services for observation, diagnosis, and active treatment of a medical, surgical, obstetric, chronic, or rehabilitative condition requiring daily direction or supervision of a physician. This includes traditional hospitals and any overnight medical treatment facility like a nursing home or rehabilitation hospital.

6. DNR Bracelets:

A DNR bracelet may be worn to communicate the existence of a DNR order in an emergency.

7. Medical Records:

The attending physician must immediately obtain a copy of the DNR order and make it part of the patient's permanent medical record.

8. Accessibility:

The person executing the DNR order must maintain it, ensuring it is accessible within the patient's place of residence outside of a hospital. For a guardian or minor, a copy must also be at the ward's or minor's school or other residential facility.

9. Revocation:

To revoke a DNR order, the person should write VOID on all pages of the order, remove any DNR bracelet, and notify the attending physician, who must update medical records immediately.

10. School Compliance:

Schools aware of a DNR order are not allowed to attempt resuscitation of a student before a health professional arrives.

11. Liability Protection:

The Act provides relief from civil and criminal liability under certain circumstances, including attempts to resuscitate an individual with an unknown DNR order or failure to resuscitate an individual with an unknowingly revoked DNR order.

12. Insurance and Healthcare Access:

The Act prohibits requiring a DNR order for insurance coverage, admission to a healthcare facility, receiving healthcare benefits, or any other reason. Life insurance issuers cannot refuse coverage based on the existence of a DNR order.

These key provisions offer an overview of the Michigan DNR Procedure Act. For detailed legal advice, consult a professional advisor. This synopsis is for educational purposes and may not reflect changes in the law. Read the actual state of Michigan DNR Procedure Act here:

https://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/mcl/pdf/mcl-Act-193-of-1996.pdf

The legal and care coordination teams at Schluter & Hughes Law Firm, PLLC are here for you. We can help answer your questions about Advance Directives, plus have the expertise needed when it comes to implementing a good plan. For a free consultation call 248.692.7392 Or contact us online at

https://www.schluterhugheslaw.com/