Advance care planning is the process of planning for someone's future health care and the care they would (or would not) like to receive in the event of serious illness, when they are unable to communicate their preferences, or at the end of their life.
Three local health networks in south east Melbourne offer Advance Care Planning services. Several online tools are also available.
Advance Care Planning is the process by which individuals discuss their wishes and preferences with regards to their healthcare with their family and health care providers. 

Benefits of Advance Care Planning Advanced Care Planning

  • A person continues to have a say in their medical care, even when they lose that physical or mental capacity 
  • People are comforted knowing they are more likely to receive treatment they want, and not receive the treatment they would not want 
  • Carers and family can make decisions knowing their loved ones choices 
  • The conversation itself can strengthen relationships between family, carers, and friends. 

People often need help to develop an Advance Care Plan that will guide their medical treatment and care. 

Victorian Advance Care Planning forms

Advance Care Planning Forms can be found on the Victorian Department of Health's website. Below is a description of forms that are often used in the Advance Care Planning process.

Click HERE to access the forms for your patients.

  • Advance Care Directive

    The Advance Care Directive document allows an adult to record their preferences for future medical treatment, should they lose decision-making capacity

  • Medical treatment decision maker

    The Medical Treatment Decision Maker document allows a patient to formally appoint a medical treatment decision maker, who will have legal authority to make medical treatment decisions on their behalf, should they become unable to do so

  • Support person

    This Support Person form allows a patient to appoint a support person to assist them make, communicate and give effect to medical treatment decisions.

Where to store completed Advance Care Planning documents 

Health professionals should encourage patients toshare copies of Advance Care Planning documents with: 

  • GP Practice 
  • Appointed person 
  • Local Hospital Network Advance Care Planning Service 
  • Upload to My Health Record
  • General Practitioners using Best Practice (BP) software

    New functionality allows GPs using BP software to upload ACP documents to My Health Record for their patient's Best Practice Factsheet.

  • Patients/Non-Best Practice software users/Other Health Professionals

    Instructions for patient upload on the My Health Record website.

Advance Care Planning in General Practice

Make Advance Care Planning part of routine care

We've created a one page flyer outlining reasons to discuss Advance Care Planning with your patients in general practice. 

This one pager covers when, where and how to discuss Advance Care Planning. The flyer also includes information MBS billing information as relevant to ACP. 

Recording of SEMPHN & Monash Health ACP Webinar

Learn more about Advance Care Planning by watching a webinar hosted by Jenny Pace, a Shared Decision Making Team Leader at Monash Health.  

Connect with your local Advance Care Planning services

Advance Care Planning (ACP) services located in Local Hospital Networks's in the SEMPHN region are committed to supporting General Practices with Advance Care Planning.

We encourage practices to link directly with the friendly ACP service teams at Alfred Health, Monash Health and Peninsula Health for expert advice, local information and support.

General practices can also request an information session for practice staff.

Please click on the links below for further information and contact details for your local ACP service.

Useful tools on Advance Care Planning

Advance Care Planning Australia

Advance Care Planning Australia is a national program funded by the Australian Government Department of Health, helping people make the best choices for their life and health care. Advance Care Planning Australia also have resources available in 18 other languages.

My Values website

The MyValues website is a set of specially constructed statements designed to help people identify, consider and communicate their wishes about the medical treatment they would want in the later stages of life.

Planning ahead – Start2Talk

Dementia Australia’s Planning ahead – Start2Talk website provides Advance Care Planning resources and help for people with dementia, or the carers and health professionals caring for them.   

The Advance Project

Provides practical, evidence-based resources and training that empower aged and primary care professionals to initiate advance care planning and palliative care.

Services and resources on Advance Care Planning

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