It’s difficult to watch a loved one go without the medical care and services they need — especially when you realize that they’re in some sort of mental decline due to the ravages of age or disease. In that kind of situation, you may have to step forward and ask the court to give you guardianship over your loved one — for their own safety.
Colorado law bestows upon that guardian a certain medical authority to make proactive medical decisions on behalf of the ward
When can it help for guardians to have medical authority over their wards?
There are a few different medical-related situations in which it having established a guardianship over your elderly parent or special needs loved one can be helpful, including:
- A situation in which your parent resides alone yet doesn’t seem to be capable of adequately caring for oneself (and refuses to live in an assisted living facility)
- They aren’t deemed competent enough (whether due to intellectual or cognitive ailments) to qualify to understand the information their physician is relaying to them necessary to give consent for medical care
As you’ll note in the scenarios described above, cognitive deficits are a real concern that may warrant the establishment of guardianship. If you fail to establish this and allow your loved one to continue to make their own decisions, then there may be tragic consequences.
Being able to establish guardianship isn’t guaranteed. You’ll want to take time to learn about the conditions both you and your prospective ward must meet before moving through with this process.