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On 18 April 2011 11:16, Alan Montague <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > Good title! > I thought the next in line to the throne must have sprained his ankle. > ....and all I could think of was Willies and Erectile Dysfunction! Jel > Alan > > --- On *Mon, 18/4/11, Rowley <[log in to unmask]>* wrote: > > > From: Rowley <[log in to unmask]> > Subject: Re: Wills in the ED > > To: [log in to unmask] > Date: Monday, 18 April, 2011, 15:15 > > > What is it about this process that requires you or any doctor at all? I > would have thought a yellow pages thrust into his hands to find a solicitor > is what he needs. > > We have this peculiar idea that once someone has crossed our threshold we > have suddenly become responsible for all aspects of their lives, however > incompetently we may do it. Would you expect a solicitor to try to intubate > someone who has collapsed in his office? No, he'd call for professional > help. Don't be afraid to do likewise. > > -----Original Message----- > From: Accident and Emergency Academic List > [mailto:[log in to unmask]<http:[log in to unmask]>] > On Behalf Of Matthew Dunn > Sent: 18 April 2011 14:32 > To: [log in to unmask]<http:[log in to unmask]> > Subject: Wills in the ED > > Had a bit of an issue cropped up the other day with a patient coming in, > dying but lucid and who wanted to draw up a will. Has anyone come across > this, and what do you do? It's not an easy one to google for (as "will" is > too common a word, but nothing else seems to work). However I can see > potential issues about someone's capacity to make a new will while in the > ED; and while I can see it from the patient's point of view I don't want to > get our most senior staff (or myself coming in in the early hours) tied up > with assessment and documentation of capacity if it's avoidable. I did find > one article about testamentary capacity pointing out that this is a legal > term that we shouldn't use without being pretty sure of our grounds, and > that it is very different to capacity to consent to a procedure. > > Matt Dunn > > Warwick > >