Our staff need to know if you have planned ahead
and appointed someone to make decisions about
your health care on your behalf. Please advise us on
admission if you have an Advance Health Directive or
chosen an Enduring Power of Attorney.
Please let us know
the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal
(QCAT) who can make certain health care decisions
for adults “without capacity”. To be appointed as a
guardian, an individual must be able to demonstrate
to QCAT that there is a need and that the existing
arrangements for decision making are inadequate.
Guardianship: A guardian is a person appointed by
A Statutory Health Attorney can give consent on your
behalf regarding most health care issues, including
withdrawing or withholding life-sustaining measures.
• the Adult Guardian where there is no one else to
act for you.
• a close adult friend or relative who is not a paid
carer
• your carer, but not a paid carer (although your
carer may receive a carer’s pension)
• a spouse
The sorts of people who can be a statutory health
attorney are:-
automatic authority to make health care decisions on
your behalf when you have not made an Advanced
Health Directive or appointed someone under an
Enduring Power of Attorney. The law allows certain
people to make some decisions about your health for
you. They are called a Statutory Health Attorney.
A Statutory Health Attorney: is someone with
Forms can be downloaded for free from the
Department of Justice website.
V01.10.10
457 Wickham Terrace, Spring Hill
Postal Address: GPO Box 764, Brisbane, Qld 4001
Phone: (07) 3834 4444
Fax: (07) 3832 6006
www.uchealth.com.au/sawmh/
Our ref: DB023.001
www.qcat.qld.gov.au/guardianship-for-adultsmatters.htm
www.justice.qld.gov.au/justice-services/guardianship
www.legalaid.qld.gov.au
It’s a good idea to see your solicitor for legal advice
in preparing these documents. Other information can
be found on these websites:
Further information
Informed consent
Keeping you safe
It is important for you to understand your
treatment options so that you are able to make the
best decision. We know that it can be difficult to
make decisions when you are not feeling well and
Important questions to ask
4. The doctor records and documents the consent
process
3. The doctor obtains your consent for a specific
treatment after explaining to you all the risks
and answering your questions
2. You decide what course of action to take after
having time to think about the information and
ask any questions
1. A discussion with your doctor about the
risks and benefits of each treatment option,
discussed in non-medical terms and in your
own language
Informed consent involves the following steps:
This enables you to participate in your own health
care and make the best decision for you.
• The risks and benefits of not having the
treatment
• The possibility of additional, related treatments
such as anaesthesia, blood transfusion or
medications.
Informed consent requires that your doctor discuss
with you the risks and benefits of each alternative
treatment option. Other things that will be
discussed include:
Why is it Important?
Informed Consent is a legal term used for the
process of obtaining your consent to have your
doctor provide treatment, including an operation,
procedure or test.
What is Informed Consent?
If you change your mind about having a procedure,
you can withdraw your consent at any time, even if
you have signed a form.
If you change your mind
• Is there alternative treatment available?
• What are the consequences of not having the
treatment?
• What are the risks of the treatment?
• What are the benefits of the treatment?
• What does the treatment involve?
• What is my main problem?
Here are some questions you
might like to ask
you are trying to understand complicated treatments.
If you are given information that you do not
understand, we want you to ask questions. If you
still do not understand, please ask more questions.
• you have a chronic medical condition that could
result in serious complications such as diabetes,
asthma and heart or kidney disease.
• your medical condition is likely to affect
your ability to make decisions
• you are about to be admitted to hospital
The best time to make an Advance Health Directive
is before any urgent health condition arises. It is
however, particularly important to make one if:
It must be in an approved form and clearly state
what type of treatment you wish to have or not
have or if you have any specific instructions about
treatments, medical conditions, religious, spiritual or
cultural beliefs.
called a “living will”) is a document that outlines
your instructions about your future health care. It
becomes effective only if you become incapable of
making your own decisions sometime in the future.
An Advance Health Directive: (sometimes
An Enduring Power of Attorney: is the term used
for the person you authorise to make a decision on
your behalf.
Further information about your options can be
obtained from your solicitor.
You can plan ahead and authorise someone to make
health decisions on your behalf if you ever have ‘lack
of capacity’ in the future.
When a person is unable to make decisions about
their treatment, this is know as “lack of capacity” and
another person must make decisions on their behalf.
Lack of capacity can result from an illness, injury or a
medical condition and can be short or long-term.
When someone can give
informed consent on your
behalf