Live by Design is a weekly News24 column by Dr Helena Dolny and Mapi Mhlangu on mortality and the conversations around it.
What questions come up for you about end-of-life situation? I am sharing two of the questions that landed in my inbox in the last week.
The person in question resides in Johannesburg, has a solid friendship circle, and does not have a single living relative in South Africa. Recently the person had serious health scare which could have resulted in sudden death if it were not for the routine check-up that revealed the imminent problem.
What if the outcome had been different and they were now the body in a morgue with „next-of-kin“ sisters and granddaughters far away either elderly or with few resources – possibly unable to travel?
The legal advice I received was that the person should update their will and insert the name of the trusted friend in the will as the designated person authorised to request release of the body for the funeral.
This, of course, requires that the designated person needs to be easily contactable – perhaps create a small card with the information and put it together with your ID in your purse or wallet.
One day, still in my lifetime, I hope this question will be redundant.
In several other countries, the Advance Directive (some refer to it as a Living Will) is legally recognised and the medical profession adheres to the patient’s wishes one hundred percent (probably due to the fear of being sued if they were to deviate from the wishes expressed).
Similarly, in many other countries, the person you designate to speak for you if/when you are unable to speak for yourself is the recognised authority that the medical profession will defer to – and it is important to note that this chosen person does not need to be next-of-kin.
