Statement of Choices

A Statement of Choices is a Queensland advance care planning document used to record a person’s values, wishes and preferences for future health care.

Unlike an Advance Health Directive, it is not legally binding and does not give consent to, or refuse, medical treatment. Instead, it helps guide and inform the people who may need to make health care decisions if the person is no longer able to make those decisions themselves. citeturn1search0turn1search15

What Can It Include?

A Statement of Choices can record things such as:

what is important to you and what gives your life meaning
your preferences for medical care and treatment
your wishes about life-sustaining treatment, including CPR
treatments you would or would not want
where you would prefer to be cared for or die
people you would like involved in your care and decision-making.

It is about helping others understand what matters to you, rather than giving them a legally binding instruction.

Form A or Form B?

Queensland has two Statement of Choices forms for adults.

Form A is for a person who has decision-making capacity and is recording their own values and preferences.

Form B is for a person who no longer has decision-making capacity. It can be completed by their legally appointed substitute decision-maker, or in some circumstances by someone who has a close and continuing relationship with the person. A health care provider should not complete Form B on the person’s behalf. citeturn1search0turn1search2