Advance Care Planning

Who would make medical treatment decisions for you if you were too sick to do this for yourself?

What medical treatments would be right to meet your goals and preferences?

Families and health care practitioners are often required to make medical treatment decisions without knowing a person’s preferences. The process of advance care planning aims to address this need.

Advance care planning is a consultation process with health care providers and family members that help you make decisions about your future health care, should you become unable to participate in medical treatment decision-making due to illness or injury.

Advance Care Planning aims to:

• Identify the right person to make medical treatment decisions on your behalf.
• Identify and document your values and preferences regarding health care and medical treatments, particularly around end-of-life decisions, and documenting these in an Advance Care Directive.
• Assist with your understanding about appropriate future medical treatment options.

Barwon Health’s Advance Care Planning program provides a service to the following:

• Consumers who have received Barwon Health services within the last 6 months with:
  – Chronic, complex or significant medical conditions
  – Ageing and frailty
  – Cognitive impairment

For those who do not meet the above criteria, talk to your doctor or seek further information, including fact sheets and advance care planning related documents, at:

• www.advancecareplanning.org.au
• www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/servicesandsupport/advance-care-plans

Or contact the National Advance Care Planning Support Service line on 1300 208 582 for free advice or to request a printed starter pack.

MyValues

MyValues is a survey that you may find helpful to clarify your values concerning your health care or possible medical intervention.

As a result of serious illness, accident or simply because of decline at the end of life, you may reach a stage when you are incapable of making or communicating your preferences concerning your health care and medical intervention.

In this situation, your doctor and family will have to make decisions for you, and they will look for clear guidance from you. MyValues may help you in explaining your values in relation to life, death, and medical intervention. Understanding and respecting your values will help your doctors and your family to make better choices about your medical treatment. With this information, they can feel reassured that they are respecting your preferences.

If you wish to use this resource, visit: www.myvalues.org.au

The Law

The Victorian Medical Treatment Planning and Decisions Act 2016 enables a person to appoint someone to act as his / her Medical Treatment Decision Maker and to document an Advance Care Directive, which has legal standing.

Further information is available at: Medical Treatment Planning and Decisions Act 2016 (health.vic.gov.au)

“I feel a huge sense of relief having completed my Advance Care Directive.I now know my voice will be heard and my wishes for end of life care will be carried out by my family and medical team.My daughter says it takes away any ‘second guessing’. End of life is a time when families should be able to spend time with their loved ones without agonizing over what treatment should be given. During my time working in aged care, I saw relatives struggle with making decisions on behalf of their loved ones. I have seen residents who are unable to express their wishes taken to hospital only to die in unfamiliar surroundings – heartbreaking for all concerned. When making an Advance care Directive, you are guided gently through the process by a caring professional planner who will make sure that your wishes are clearly documented and easy to understand.” Jan Shea-Simonds

“I had really never given any thought to dying or death until Jan suggested we needed to address the subject, for all sorts of important and valid reasons – not the least of which was that our children had a clear understanding of our preferences and wishes. Jan wisely pointed out that we both have health issues and that we are now older than our respective mums at the time that they died. Jan also had the experience and wisdom of her long and distinguished nursing career to draw on – in particular from her work in aged care. The process wasn’t as daunting and difficult as I thought it would be, and with Jan’s help and the kind and informed counsel of Barwon Health ACP, we have both documented our wishes and our plans. Obviously there are ‘unknowns’ and issues that may arise out of the blue, but at least our family, our doctors and treating medical professionals will have a pretty clear picture of our wishes if we are unable to communicate them ourselves at that time. We are also able to review our respective Advance Care Directives as the time goes by, and make any changes if required. It is a comfort to have something in place rather than nothing at all, and it has helped me to focus on an issue that I was reluctant to deal with in the first instance.”  George Shea-Simonds, Jan’s husband

Videos

• Advance Care Planning
• Putting it in Writing
• Taking Care of Dying Time
• Consumer Story – Advance Care Planning