title: Competency assessment of medical and psychiatric patients under Maryland's Health Care Decisions Act.
abstract: The Health Care Decisions Act provides considerable flexibility and autonomy for patients regarding advance directives and surrogate decision making and clarifies how patients can tell their physicians and the world in general what they would like to have happen if they become incapable of making their own health care decisions. The law, however, is complex. This article provides help for physicians in interpreting some of the Act's clinical and legal ramifications.
authors.affiliation: Psychiatry and Law Program, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Janofsky
mesh_terms: D016223:Advance Directives; D000465:Algorithms; D003657:Decision Making; D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D008396:Maryland; D016743:Mental Competency / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D010344:Patient Advocacy / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales