Don't leave your loved ones guessing...
By making an Advance Care Directive or Advance Care Plan, you can decide on the health care you'd want to receive in the event you become seriously ill or injured and unable to speak for yourself.
Advance care planning is the process of deciding what you would want to happen to you should you become ill or injured and be unable to speak for yourself. It is important to have a plan in place so you are in control of what happens to you, if you are unable to express your wishes and preferences for care and treatment. Before making a plan, you should talk with family, friends and/or your healthcare team.
The recommended advance care planning process includes:
An Advance Care Directive (directive) is a written document outlining what you'd like to happen in the event you become seriously ill or injured and unable to speak for yourself. It is legally binding and is therefore, the best way to ensure your wishes for treatment and care are respected by those closest to you.
If you are ready to make a directive, NSW Health has developed a comprehensive toolkit explaining all the information you need to know about the process and a form where you can record your wishes.
Support available:
When you have finished your directive, it is recommended you upload it to your My Health Record so your wishes can be safely and securely accessed by the health professionals who are treating you.
In NSW, an Advance Care Directive can be spoken or written. You must have decision-making capacity to make an Advance Care Directive. If you no longer have capacity, you cannot make an Advance Care Directive. However, you or those significant to you can still plan for your end-of-life care and treatment by completing an Advance Care Plan.
An Advance Care Directive must be completed by you and should reflect your preferences for care and treatment. Someone else cannot make an Advance Care Directive on your behalf. However, someone may assist you to write or document your preferences. It also needs to have clear and specific details about treatments that you would accept or refuse and apply to the situation you are in at the time. It is recommended that you speak to your GP or treating healthcare team when completing an advance care directive, to ensure that the information contained in the directive is relevant and medically appropriate.
No. For an Advance Care Directive to be valid, it must be completed by you. However, someone may assist you to write or document your preferences. Family members cannot make an Advance Care Directive for someone who no longer has decision-making capacity.
If you are looking to make a plan for future healthcare on someone else’s behalf, you can complete an Advance Care Plan.
Doctors and health care professionals use your Advance Care Directive if you are unable to make or communicate decisions about your healthcare and treatment.
You should keep your Advance Care Directive in a place that is easy for you or someone else to find. It is a good idea to leave copies with your Person Responsible, family or carer, doctor or healthcare facility.
It is also recommended that you upload your completed Advance Care Directive to My Health Record. For more information, see https://www.digitalhealth.gov.au/initiatives-and-programs/my-health-record/whats-inside/advance-care-planning
Please do not send the document to the NSW Ministry of Health.
You can change your Advance Care Directive as often as you like, as long as you have capacity. It is a good idea to read over anything you have written once a year, to make sure it is still current. If you change your Advance Care Directive, you should make sure you let people know and replace all of the copies with the new Advance Care Directive.
If you can speak for yourself and have capacity when you are receiving treatment, your wishes and preferences will take precedence over what is written in your Advance Care Directive. Your Advance Care Directive will only come into effect when you do not have capacity or are unable to speak for yourself.
An Advance Care Directive can only be made by you as an adult with decision-making capacity. Your legally appointed guardian or person responsible cannot override your Advance Care Directive.
An Advance Care Plan also guides healthcare decision making, if you are unable to speak or otherwise communicate your preferences for yourself. However, an Advance Care Plan can be developed on behalf of or with a person who has limited decision-making capacity, and it is not legally enforceable. Your Advance Care Plan can also include your values and wishes about where you would like to be cared for if you are seriously ill and any personal or cultural issues that are important to you. You can view a sample form of the Advance Care Plan here:
https://www.advancecareplanning.org.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0029/178427/advance-care-plan_full-name.pdf
The Guardianship Act (1987) outlines who can make healthcare decisions for you when you no longer can. This person is called the Person Responsible.
A person responsible is one of the following people in order of priority:
Capacity refers to an adult’s ability to make decisions for themself. Capacity can relate to a person’s ability to make medical, legal, financial and personal decisions. In some circumstances, the law sets out what criteria must be met for someone to have the capacity to make certain decisions, for example to consent to medical treatment.
For more information on capacity, visit: The Communities and Justice Capacity Toolkit.
No. A Will only comes into effect after death. Any information in your Will cannot be accessed by your Person Responsible or treating team while you are alive.
No. The role of a Power of Attorney is to manage your assets and make financial and legal decisions on your behalf.
No. To access voluntary assisted dying, you must retain decision-making capacity and the ability to communicate requests and decisions throughout the entire process. Because an Advance Care Directive only comes into effect when you no longer have capacity, you cannot access voluntary assisted dying by requesting it in an Advance Care Directive.
Yes. Advance Care Directives made in other Australian states and territories are recognised in NSW.
An Advance Care Directives does not need to be signed or witnessed to be valid. However, to support its validity, it is recommended that you sign your Advance Care Directive. A health professional or a witness who can verify that your Advance Care Directive reflects your preferences can also sign it.
A list of relevant end of life policy documents applicable to the NSW Health system. Policy documents are issued by the Ministry of Health through the Policy Distribution System.
