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1. My health care professional told me I need a procedure that is "routine," and said, "don't worry, nothing ever goes wrong." I'm just not so sure; what should I do?

   The first thing you need to do is get more information. Using the list under the section entitled "informed consent," ask your health care professional as many questions as you need to be comfortable with your care. Do not undergo any treatments or procedures you don't understand or for which you don't know the risks.

2. The consent form the hospital asked me to sign said my surgery could cause "death" and/or "loss of limb," etc. Should I sign it?

   There are risks involved in any type of surgery; while the risk may be slim, some people have, in fact, died during very routine types of procedures. That's why the hospital has built these statements into their consent form. Your health care professional should have discussed with you in detail the risks and probabilities of success of your treatment. If you don't feel comfortable, based on that discussion, with this particular type of surgery, talk to him or her in detail about alternative treatments and their risks and probabilities of success. Be sure, also, to find out what might happen if you choose not to get any treatment, and weigh your choices carefully.

3. I'm still in the prime of my life and quite healthy. Why do I need to worry about advance directives?

   Unfortunately, tragedies happen every day to healthy people in the prime of their lives. Have you considered what would happen if a car accident, for example, left you permanently unconscious? The emotional and financial burdens on your family could be enormous. In some cases, family members would feel powerless to "pull the plug" even though that's what you may have preferred over being unconscious for, perhaps, decades. It's much easier to make these decisions if you have spelled out in advance your wishes.

4. I filled out advance directives, now what?

   It's one thing to have completed advance directives, but if no one knows they exist, they'll do you no good. Tell your close family and friends of their existence and where you plan to keep them-in a safe place but not in a safe deposit box because it wouldn't be accessible by anyone but you. Also, give a copy to your health care professional and ask that it be put in your medical records. Others you might consider sharing your advance directives with are your lawyer and your clergy. Remember that if for some reason you execute new advance directives, you should give copies of the new ones to everyone to whom you gave old copies, and destroy the old ones.