Power of Attorney: Obtain It Before a Diagnosis of Dementia/Alzheimer’s

I received a crisis call recently from an adult daughter at her wit's end with her demented elderly parents, who had finally agreed to move to Assisted Living, but just as the moving truck arrived changed their minds and refused to go!

And earlier this year I received a call from a man, crying, saying his 90+ year old parents left the stove on and burned the house down, were in the hospital and fortunately would be okay, but had hired a contractor to rebuild their home, rather than moving to Assisted Living!

In both cases, the adult children had been in denial and hadn't had "the conversation" with their parents about their wishes for their later years. They hadn't insisted on having their parents sign a Durable Power of Attorney (one for health and one for financial) so if the parents became incapacitated, proper decisions could be made for them.

Once a person is diagnosed with any type of dementia, they are no longer considered to be competent and capable of signing legal documents. This is why it is so important to see an Elder Law Attorney and get all the legal documents in place prior to any diagnosis of dementia. The easiest way to find one is by contacting the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys at http://www.naela.org/.

You can learn more about Jacqueline and find information about her book at ElderRage.com.