Planning your future health care
What is advance care planning
Advance care planning is thinking about and communicating your preferences for future health care.
It can mean:
- thinking, talking and deciding about what matters to you
- choosing a decision-maker who can speak on your behalf
- writing down your preferences in documents.
Your documents let others know your wishes, values, beliefs and choices. They tell health professionals and people in your life how to respect your choices if you can't speak for yourself.
Planning your future health care helps you get the care you want.
Who needs an advance care plan
Advance care planning is for everyone.
The best time to plan is when you're healthy, and it’s also important to have advance care planning documents if:
- you're older, or nearing the end of your life
- you have a long-term illness or several diseases
- you have strong beliefs about the care you want.
Making a plan is voluntary, the forms you use and what you include is your choice.
Children and young people under 18 can take part in advance care planning by using a paediatric statement of choices.
If you can't make health care decisions for yourself, a substitute decision-maker can fill in a statement of choices (Form B) on your behalf.
What should be in your advance care plan
Your advance care plan should include your wishes about future medical treatment and care.
It can include:
- your values and beliefs, including any cultural, spiritual or religious beliefs and plans
- which medical treatments you do or don't want
- where you want to have care – at home or in hospital
- who you want to make decisions for you.
You can read our guides for help filling in advance care planning forms.
Voluntary assisted dying
You can't ask for voluntary assisted dying in your advance care planning documents.
Under the law, health professionals can't follow a voluntary assisted dying request made in your advance care planning documents.
It’s a separate legal process that only you can request, and you must have decision-making capacity to access it. No one else, including your substitute decision-maker, can ask for voluntary assisted dying for you.
Learn more in the voluntary assisted dying and advance care planning fact sheet (PDF 782 KB).
When your plan applies
Your advance care planning documents for health care are only used when you can’t make or communicate decisions.