Completing your advance care plan
It can be hard to talk about what might happen if you become very unwell, but it will give you and your loved ones peace of mind when they know what your wishes are so they can be respected.
Follow this step-by-step guide for information about what you need to do and think about at each stage of the planning process.
Step 1: Discuss
Think about what’s important to you, your current health conditions and the health outcomes you would find acceptable or unacceptable.
This may involve talking to your health care provider about your current health conditions and care options (now and into the future).
Identify who you would trust to make decisions on your behalf if needed (a substitute decision maker/s).
Discuss your preferences for care with your substitute decision maker(s), family, friends and health care providers.
Step 2: Record
You can record your preferences and decisions by completing one or more of the following advance care planning forms:
You can use the Advance Health Directive or Enduring Power of Attorney form to legally appoint an attorney. An attorney is someone who will make decisions for you and can be a family member, friend or someone else you trust to act in your best interests.
Step 3: Share
Keep your original documents.
Share copies of your advance care planning documents with anyone who may need to be involved in decisions about your future care, for example:
- decision makers
- family
- close friends
- your health care provider(s).
Send a copy/scan of your completed advance care planning documents to the Statewide Office of Advance Care Planning via:
- Email: acp@health.qld.gov.au
- Fax: 1300 008 227
- Post: PO Box 2274, Runcorn 4113.
The Statewide Office of Advance Care Planning will review the document(s) and, if they meet the document requirements, upload them to your secure Queensland Health electronic hospital record. This means they can be easily accessed by the clinicians involved in your care if and when they are needed.
If you wish your document to be in My Health Record you can upload it via the My Health Record website.
Step 4: Review
You can make changes to your advance care planning documents at any time you have the decision-making capacity to do so (see Capacity Assessment Guidelines from the Department of Justice and Attorney-General).
It is important to review your advance care planning documents on a regular basis, especially when significant changes occur in your life, for example:
- when your health, personal or living situation changes
- when your preferences change
- if you wish to change who you have appointed as your substitute decision-maker(s).
Each of these may be triggers for you to review your preferences and update/share ACP documents accordingly.