What are psychiatric advance directives

In some cases, mental health disorders can leave patients in the unfortunate position of no longer being capable of making their own decisions for unknown periods. Provisions like psychiatric advance directives allow for the power to be placed back in the patient's hands. 

Understanding psychiatric advance directives

Psychiatric advance directives are legal documents allowing individuals with mental health conditions to outline how their treatment should be handled in future scenarios if they can no longer make decisions. The function of the directive is to provide patients with autonomy and dignity even in the face of incapacitation. It can cover factors like medication handling, future hospitalizations, emergency care planning, and the nomination of trusted persons known as agents or proxies.

In the hands of providers, directives offer a clear understanding of how best to approach caring for a patient. According to the American Psychiatric Association, they “facilitate communication between a physician and patient about important treatment decisions that may prevent crises from occurring.” Because treatment is outlined, all those involved can avoid unnecessary treatment or intervention. 

How to effectively share psychiatric advance directives

Get the patient authorization:

• As a best practice, request the patient's written authorization for the directive. 
• Prior to the authorization, patients should receive complete information on how the directive works and a full explanation of treatment options moving forward. 

Use HIPAA compliant email systems: 

• Use HIPAA compliant email services like Paubox Email Suite or API to protect health information sent through the directive forms. 

Be careful when sending the psychiatric advance directives through email: 

• Don’t include any protected health information (PHI) in the subject line or body of the email. 
• Attach the directive document to the email. If a service like Paubox is in use, this attachment is encrypted without any added thought. 
• Include disclaimers to warn patients that the email contains confidential medical information. This allows them to access the document at a time when they are in private.

Always store the psychiatric advance directive securely: 

• Once the directive is shared, store it securely in the patient's electronic health record (EHR). 
• Make sure that document management systems remain HIPAA compliant. 

FAQs

What is informed consent? 

Informed consent is when a patient is given all the necessary information about a treatment or procedure. 

Can EHRs be used to track consent? 

EHRs can be used to track consent and store patients' approval. 

What is a medical directive?

A medical directive outlines a person's preferences related to general medical care.