Supporting voluntary assisted dying for people in your care

The information on this page is for:

health professionals
health and care facilities.

You may have patients, clients or residents in your care who want information or need support with voluntary assisted dying.

In the ACT voluntary assisted dying services will be delivered by a range of medical and nurse practitioners, with options in hospitals, at patient’s homes and in other practice settings.

The Voluntary Assisted Dying Care Navigator Service is a central point of contact for the ACT community for enquiries about voluntary assisted dying in the ACT. They are open Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays), 8:30am to 5pm. Email VAD.carenavigators@act.gov.au or call 02 5124 1888.

Voluntary assisted dying explained

Voluntary assisted dying is when people use medical help to end their life at a time they choose. It is for people who have a medical condition that is terminal and causing suffering.

To access voluntary assisted dying people must:

meet all the eligibility criteria
follow all the legal steps of the process.

Voluntary assisted dying will be one of the options available in the ACT at end of life. It is available along with other end of life and palliative care options. More information is available in the voluntary assisted dying general information brochure [PDF 741 KB].

Who can access voluntary assisted dying

To access voluntary assisted dying in the ACT a person must:

be 18 or older
have lived in the ACT for the last 12 months
have an advanced and progressive medical condition that is expected to cause death and is causing them intolerable suffering
have decision-making capacity throughout the whole process
be acting voluntarily and without coercion.

If a person has not lived in the ACT for the past 12 months but they have a substantial connection to the ACT, they will be able to apply for a residency exemption.

To access voluntary assisted dying a person must have been diagnosed with a condition that either on its own, or in combination with other diagnosed conditions, is advanced, progressive and expected to cause death.

A condition is advanced if:

the person’s functioning and quality of life is deteriorating and not expected to improve
any treatments for the conditions that are reasonably available and acceptable to the person have lost any beneficial impact
the person is approaching the end of their life.

A condition is progressive if a person’s condition is deteriorating and will continue to deteriorate.

To access voluntary assisted dying a person must be experiencing persistent suffering from a condition or a medical treatment for that condition, which in the person’s opinion, is intolerable.

A person with disability or mental illness will be able to access voluntary assisted dying if they meet all the eligibility requirements. Having a mental illness alone will not make a person eligible to access voluntary assisted dying under the law. A disability can only make a person eligible if it also meets all of the eligibility criteria.

A person must have decision-making capacity during all steps of the voluntary assisted dying process. Capacity is a legal term referring to the person’s ability to make decisions, in this case, those relating to their medical treatment. The person must also be acting voluntarily and without coercion.

Eligibility criteria will be covered in more detail in the clinical guidelines and training for authorised practitioners.

The process

There will be 10 steps in the voluntary assisted dying process in ACT. A person can stop or pause the process at any time.

First request

A person asks an authorised doctor or nurse practitioner to access voluntary assisted dying.

First assessment

A coordinating practitioner checks if the person is eligible to access voluntary assisted dying.

Consulting assessment

A different authorised practitioner (called a consulting practitioner) also checks if the person is eligible to access voluntary assisted dying.

Second request

The person fills in a written form to confirm they want to access voluntary assisted dying.

Final request

The person makes a clear final request for voluntary assisted dying.

Final assessment

The coordinating practitioner confirms the person has decision-making capacity and is acting voluntarily and without coercion.

Administration decision

The person decides if they want to take the voluntary assisted dying substance themselves or have it given to them by a practitioner (called an administering practitioner).

Prescription and supply

The voluntary assisted dying substance is supplied by the ACT Voluntary Assisted Dying Pharmacy Service.

Administering the substance

The person either takes the substance or it is given to them by an administrating practitioner.

After death

The person’s death is confirmed, and ACT Births, Relationships and Deaths are told about their death.

You can also download a copy of this voluntary assisted dying process [PDF 676 KB].

Some communication related to voluntary assisted dying process can only occur in person. The use of a carriage service, such as telehealth, may be prohibited under the Criminal Code Act 1995.

A carriage service means any method of communicating or transmitting information which uses the internet, the cloud, telephone, videoconferencing, fax or other online applications.

Your role

If a person asks you about voluntary assisted dying and you know about the process, you can answer their questions and give them more information.

Read the voluntary assisted dying guidance for health professionals [PDF 410 KB] if you do not know much about voluntary assisted dying or your legal obligations when responding to a person asking about voluntary assisted dying.

You can also tell people to visit the Accessing voluntary assisted dying in the ACT webpage for more information.

Becoming a voluntary assisted dying authorised practitioner

Read Becoming a voluntary assisted dying practitioner for information about who can become a voluntary assisted dying practitioner. This includes training requirements and how to apply.

Raising voluntary assisted dying with your patient

If you’re a medical or nurse practitioner, or other relevant health professional and want to raise voluntary assisted dying as an end-of-life choice with your patient, you must follow the requirements set out in the Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2024.

Relevant health professionals are:

counsellors
other health practitioners registered by Ahpra
social workers
speech pathologists

If you’re a medical or nurse practitioner and know or believe that a person has been diagnosed with an eligible condition you may raise voluntary assisted dying as an end-of-life option.

If you have the knowledge to talk about treatment and palliative care options, you must ensure that the person knows the treatment and palliative care options available to them (and the outcomes of those options).

If you’re a medical or nurse practitioner and do not think you have the knowledge to appropriately discuss treatment and palliative care options, or are a relevant health professional, you'll still be able to raise voluntary assisted dying as an end-of-life choice, however when doing so you must tell the person:

they have treatment and palliative care options available to them
they should discuss these options with their treating medical team.

Conscientious objection

You can refuse to take part in voluntary assisted dying. If you're a health practitioner, social worker or speech pathologist you must give the contact details of the ACT Voluntary Assisted Dying Care Navigator Service to any person who asks you for information about or asks to access voluntary assisted dying. You must do this within 2 business days.

The following resources are available for download:

Read the voluntary assisted dying guidance for health professionals [PDF 410 KB] to find out more about your conscientious objection legal obligations.

Training and clinical guidance

Mandatory training for practitioners

Read Becoming a voluntary assisted dying practitioner for information about mandatory training for practitioners who wish to become a coordinating, consulting or administering practitioner.

General awareness training

General awareness training for voluntary assisted dying is available for health professionals. This is an educational tool to provide them a basic understanding of the process of voluntary assisted dying as an end of life option alongside palliative care in the ACT.

Notification of death

If you are medical practitioner who is not authorised to access the voluntary assisted dying online portal, you can complete and submit the notification of death form. This form must be submitted to notify the Voluntary Assisted Dying Oversight Board of a person’s death under the Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2024.

Guidelines and clinical practice

The ACT voluntary assisted dying clinical guidelines describe the voluntary assisted dying process in the ACT and supports health professionals to adhere to the law.

Download the voluntary assisted dying clinical guidelines [PDF 1.5 MB].

Guidelines for regulated and other health professionals

There are legislated and regulatory obligations for all Ahpra-regulated health professionals as well as three non-regulated health professional groups:

Social workers
Speech pathologists
Counsellors.

The guide for health professionals supports you to provide respectful, inclusive, and legally appropriate information to patients, carers and families.

Download the guide for health professionals [PDF 381 KB].

Opportunities to learn and connect

Community of practice is where authorised voluntary assisted dying practitioners can stay informed, share experiences and improve how voluntary assisted dying is delivered in the ACT.

Considerations for cross-border residents

If a person has been approved to access voluntary assisted dying in another state or territory (e.g. NSW), they will not be able to transfer their approval to the ACT.

If the person wants to access voluntary assisted dying in the ACT, they will need to do each step of the process in the ACT, including administration of the substance.

This is because the laws and eligibility are different for each state and territory.

ACT residents seeking voluntary assisted dying in another state or territory

If a person in your care asks you about accessing voluntary assisted dying in another state or territory, you should direct them to services in that state or territory. You should not discuss your opinion on the person’s eligibility in another state or territory.

ACT practitioners supporting residents from another state or territory

If you have any people in your care accessing voluntary assisted dying in another state or territory (e.g. NSW), they need to complete each step of the process in that state or territory. The voluntary assisted dying authorised practitioners must also be authorised in that state or territory for each step of the process.

Residency exemptions

A person in your care may be eligible for a residency exemption to access voluntary assisted dying in the ACT. This includes if they have not lived in the ACT for the last 12 months but have a substantial connection to the ACT.

Where a residency exemption is granted, the ACT Government will provide written advice to the person. It is still a requirement that all steps of the process must occur in the ACT. Read residency exemption information for more details about the exemptions.

Download the residency exemption form [PDF 1.2 MB].

Providing voluntary assisted dying in a health or care facility

Examples of health and care facilities are:

hospitals, including private hospitals
hospices
residential aged care facilities
hostels
respite facilities
any other place people with illness, disease, incapacity or disability access accommodation, nursing or personal care.

These facilities must:

have a policy about voluntary assisted dying
allow residents to get information about and complete steps in the voluntary assisted dying process within the facilities.

A facilities quick reference guide [PDF 323 KB] and a Health and Care Facility Guidance document [PDF 597 KB] about the voluntary assisted dying laws for health and care facilities is available to download.

Voluntary assisted dying policy

Your facility must have a policy that reflects their obligations in relation to voluntary assisted dying.

The policy must be easy to find and understand for:

all staff and care providers
visiting health care providers
current and future residents
carers of current or future residents.

For example, the policy can be available on your facility’s website or in a brochure.

The policy must set out:

if voluntary assisted dying services will be offered at the facility
that care will not be withdrawn to a resident because they have asked for information about or access to voluntary assisted dying
the facility will provide the contact details of the ACT Voluntary Assisted Dying Care Navigator Service where a resident (or someone on their behalf) asks for information about voluntary assisted dying.

Responding to requests

Your facility and staff can refuse to take part in voluntary assisted dying. But if your facility does not offer services related to voluntary assisted dying, your facility and its staff will have obligations to allow a person who wishes to access voluntary assisted dying in other ways. These requirements are meant to ensure a facility does not stop a resident from accessing voluntary assisted dying information or service.

A resident may ask you about voluntary assisted dying. If you're a health practitioner (or a social worker or speech pathologist), you must give them the contact details of the ACT Voluntary Assisted Dying Care Navigator Service within 2 business days.

Your facility should also help the resident to contact this service. This may be helping them use a phone, send an email or use another communication aid like a support person or an interpreter.

Your facility must continue to give the resident same level of care needed to meet their needs such as palliative care. You must not withdraw or refuse to provide care to a resident because they have asked for information about, or wish to access, voluntary assisted dying.

Visitors and transfers

If your facility does not provide access to voluntary assisted dying services your facility will have to allow a ‘relevant person’ reasonable access to visit a resident to give them information or provide access to voluntary assisted dying, at a time that is acceptable to the resident.

A relevant person may be:

a voluntary assisted dying authorised practitioner
an employee of the ACT Voluntary Assisted Dying Care Navigator or Pharmacy Service
a person acting as a witness, agent or contact person for the resident
a person providing interpreting and/or translating services for the resident.

If the relevant person cannot attend your facility at a time that is acceptable to the resident, your facility must ask the resident if they want to be transferred to a place to see the relevant person. Your facility must support transferring the resident to and from the place to see the relevant person.

If the resident or a person speaking on the resident’s behalf confirms they want to be transferred, your facility must ask the resident’s voluntary assisted dying practitioner or treating doctor to decide whether the transfer is reasonable. The resident’s voluntary assisted dying practitioner or treating doctor will consider a number of factors and decide whether it is reasonable or not to transfer the resident.

In the case where the relevant person is unavailable or the resident’s voluntary assisted dying practitioner or treating doctor thinks the transfer to that relevant person is unreasonable, transferring the resident to another relevant person could be a possible alternative. Your facility must also support the transfer to another relevant person.

If the practitioner decides it is reasonable, your facility must confirm with the resident that they consent and as soon as possible, organise the transfer.

If your facility does not organise the transfer, your facility must write to the Voluntary Assisted Dying Oversight Board stating the:

reasons why the transfer did not happen, and
steps taken by your facility to try to support the transfer.

The practitioner might alternatively say it is not reasonable to transfer the resident. If so, your facility must take reasonable steps to allow the relevant person or another relevant person access to the resident at the facility, provided that the resident consents.

Support and resources

ACT Voluntary Assisted Dying Care Navigator Service

This service will be a central point of contact for the ACT community, including health professionals, for all enquiries about voluntary assisted dying in the ACT. The service is available for everyone including you and people in your care. It will be staffed by health professionals called care navigators.

The care navigators can:

give general information about voluntary assisted dying in the ACT
help people find voluntary assisted dying practitioners
help people access resources and support.

The care navigator service will be open from Monday to Friday. 8:30am to 5pm (excluding public holidays).

The following resources are available for download:

ACT Voluntary Assisted Dying Pharmacy Service

This service will make sure any eligible person accessing voluntary assisted dying will be provided with the voluntary assisted dying substance, including adjunct medications, and education in line with best practice. It will be located with the ACT Voluntary Assisted Dying Care Navigator Service at The Canberra Hospital. It will be the only pharmacy in the ACT who can supply and dispose of the voluntary assisted dying substance.

It will be open Monday to Friday from 8:30am to 4:30pm (excluding public holidays).

Download voluntary assisted dying information for pharmacists [PDF 209 KB].

ACT Voluntary Assisted Dying Oversight Board

Board members will work together to make sure the ACT’s voluntary assisted dying services are operating safely and following the ACT Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2024. The Voluntary Assisted Dying Oversight Board will report to the ACT Minister for Health and will refer any issues to relevant persons/bodies (e.g. coroner or ACT Human Rights Commission).

Read ACT Voluntary Assisted Dying Oversight Board for more information.

Using interpreters or communication support

It will be important that people accessing voluntary assisted dying can clearly communicate their wishes and understand what is happening at all stages of the process.

Interpreters should be used at any stage of the voluntary assisted dying process to help people who speak a language other than English or for people who use non-spoken language, such as Auslan.

If an interpreter is required, they must not:

be a family member of the person
know or believe that they are a beneficiary under the will of the person
know or believe they may benefit financially or in any other material way from assisting the person to access voluntary assisted dying or the death of the person, other than by receiving reasonable fees for interpreting services
be an owner or responsible for the management of a facility where the person is a resident, and
be directly involved in providing a health service, aged care service or personal care service to the person.

An exemption to the above criteria can be granted by the Health and Community Services Directorate if there are exceptional circumstances and no other interpreter is reasonably available.

Download the interpreter exemption factsheet [PDF 254 KB].
Download the application for interpreter exemption form [PDF 1.2 MB].

To ensure the appropriate skills required to provide interpreter services as part of the voluntary assisted dying processes, it is preferable an interpreter is accredited by a professional body such as the National Accreditation Authority for Translators and Interpreters (NAATI).

Speech pathologists will also be able help people to communicate using special aids or strategies. This includes augmentative and alternative communication such as:

a communication book
a communication display
tablets
speech generation devices
gestures or facial expressions
amplification devices and hearing aids.

Counselling and mental health support

Talking about death and voluntary assisted dying may be challenging. For local support, you’ll be able to reach out to the ACT Voluntary Assisted Dying Care Navigator Service and community of practice.

You can also call these free services:

Voluntary Assisted Dying Care Navigator Service on 02 5124 1888 – open Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm (excluding public holidays).
Lifeline on 13 11 14 – open 24 hours for crisis telephone support.
Griefline on 1300 845 745 – open 8am to 8pm, 7 days a week.
Grief Australia on 1800 642 066 – open 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.
Canberra Grief Centre on 0409 966 515 – open 9am to 5pm, Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.
Solace ACT on 02 6297 1052.
13YARN on 13 92 76 – open 24 hours for crisis telephone support. Yarn with an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander Crisis Supporter.
ACT Government Grief and Bereavement website.
Carer Gateway service on 1800 422 737.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples

Some Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people may wish to die on Country as part of their end-of-life journey.

The ACT law has rules about where voluntary assisted dying can take place. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people can choose to die at home surrounded by family and on Country, but their death will need to take place in the ACT.

If they do not usually live in the ACT, but want to die on Country in the ACT, they’ll be able to apply for a residency exemption.

Download voluntary assisted dying information for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples [PDF 322 KB].