 Although the topic of this entry is primarily the nature of decision-making capacity, it is worth pausing briefly to comment on what morally follows from a declaration of incapacity. If a patient is deemed incapable of making a particular decision, then someone else (usually a family member) will be designated to make it for her. If the patient was refusing what others take to be beneficial treatment, then a finding of incompetence means that the treatment could be forced on the patient if a surrogate deems this best. However, while it is true that when a person is incompetent to make a decision, this means that the final authority for decisions will lie elsewhere, this doesn’t automatically mean that the patient’s current wishes, values, preferences etc. are of no importance or that they need not be considered in making decisions for the patient. Many incompetent patients clearly have strong desires that should be accommodated, at least when doing so will not otherwise cause problems. Given the strong link between well-being and what a person cares about, it is imperative for caretakers to at least consider what the patient currently wants.