When you appoint a Medical Treatment Decision Maker, you provide the appointed individual or individuals with the legal authority to make medical decisions for you in the event that you lose your ‘decision-making capacity’ due to injury or illness (such as if you are unconscious or are suffering from Dementia).
You are considered to have capacity to make medical decisions on your own behalf when you can retain, understand and weigh up information necessary to make a decision on your healthcare or treatment, and then communicate your decision when needed.
A medical practitioner is responsible for determining whether you have the capacity to make a specific medical treatment decision. If they determine that you do not have capacity, the decision will be made by your Medical Treatment Decision Maker (if appointed).
In stepping into such role, your Medical Treatment Decision Maker must be guided by your preferences and values in making a decision they believe you would have made if you had the capacity to do so.
If you wish to execute a Medical Treatment Decision Maker document, you will need to carefully select who you will appoint to make medical treatment decisions for you.
Before choosing which individual or individuals you wish to appoint, we recommend consulting an appropriately-qualified lawyer and/or medical practitioner, and thinking about what attributes you would like your appointed decision maker to have.
For example, you may want to appoint someone who is trustworthy, is willing to act on your wishes and views rather than their own, and can communicate and consult with others (including medical practitioners) effectively.
Once you have selected the individual or individuals who you wish to appoint as your Medical Treatment Decision Maker, you should sit down with them and discuss your wishes relating to any potential future medical treatment such as surgery, types of medication or life support.
You should endeavour to select an individual, or individuals who you believe will respect your values and preferences when it comes to medical treatment. It is important to note that although you can appoint multiple people as your Medical Treatment Decision Maker, only one person can act in such capacity at any given time.
Once you have selected the individual or individuals you wish to appoint in the role of decision maker, you should instruct a lawyer to draft the Medical Treatment Decision Maker document.
You can appoint a Medical Treatment Decision Maker at any time if you are at least 18 years of age and have decision-making capacity.
When executing the document, you must sign the form in the presence of two witnesses, one of whom must be a qualified witness, such as a lawyer or a Justice of the Peace.
The witnesses cannot be anyone who is appointed in the document.
Your chosen individual/s must also sign the document in the presence of two witnesses to accept their appointment as Medical Treatment Decision Maker.
Once the document has been executed, we recommend that you:
It is important to note that the role of a Medical Treatment Decision Maker only commences if and when you lose the capacity to make your own medical treatment decisions.
The appointment of your Medical Treatment Decision Maker ends if:
If you lose decision-making capacity, a person is able to make medical treatment decisions for you if they have been previously appointed a Medical Treatment Decision Maker by you or have been appointed as your guardian through the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal.
If neither of the above has occurred, your Medical Treatment Decision Maker is the first of the following people who is in a close and continuing relationship with you and is reasonably available, willing, and able to make a medical decision for you:
In relation to a child, a Medical Treatment Decision Maker is the child’s parent or guardian or other person with parental responsibility who is reasonably available and willing and able to make a medical treatment decision.
In the event that you experience an injury or illness and no longer have the capacity to make your own medical treatment decisions, a pre-appointed Medical Treatment Decision Maker can stand in your shoes and consider your medical preferences, values and beliefs in order to make the right medical treatment decisions for you.
If you or someone you know wants more information or needs help or advice with a Medical Treatment Decision Maker, please contact our Intake team on (03) 8415 5600 or email us at reception@hartleyslawyers.com.au.
This article is intended to provide general information only and is limited to the Victorian jurisdiction only. You should obtain professional advice before you undertake any course of action.