s.2Interpretation— Health Care Decisions Act (2022 Revision)

Section 2Part 0 —

Interpretation

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on a directive, means —

for a registered practitioner, to provide health care, in a way wished for under the directive, including, for example, a wish to be denied particular health care or any health care (except under a barred provision);

for a proxy, to make a proxy decision that the directive-maker is to be provided health care in a way wished for under the directive, including, for example, a wish to be denied particular health care or any health care (except under a barred provision);

means a document made by a person expressing that person's health care wishes in the event that that person becomes mentally incompetent, including, for example, that that person —

wishes to be denied life-sustaining measures if that person becomes terminally ill;

does not wish to undergo another stated type of health care;

means the principles for applying and making decisions and orders under this Act;

means an appeal under section 47;

means suicide undertaken by a person with the encouragement or assistance of another person;

means the grantee of a power of attorney given under the Powers of Attorney Act (1996 Revision);

means a provision of a directive that is ineffective pursuant to section 14;

of a directive-maker, means the directive-maker's proper health care and the protection of the directive-maker's health interests, having regard to —

the relevant guidelines of the General Medical Council of the United Kingdom;

the codes of standards of professional practice under section 35 of the Health Practice Act (2021 Revision);

means an irreversible loss of the capacity of consciousness combined with the irreversible loss of all brainstem functions, including the capacity to breathe;

includes —

liability for professional misconduct;

susceptibility to sanction or other adverse action for contravening a code of professional ethics or a departure from an accepted form of professional conduct;

means the Grand Court;

in relation to health care to a person, means to withdraw or withhold health care (including life-sustaining measures) from that person;

includes brainstem death and when there is an irreversible cessation of circulation of blood in a person's body;

means —

an advance health care directive generally;

for a provision of this Act about a particular proxy, the directive under which the proxy was appointed;

means —

a person who makes a directive pursuant to this Act;

for a provision of this Act about a particular proxy, the directive-maker who appointed the proxy;

means an individual registered as a medical doctor under Schedule 4 of the Health Practice Act (2021 Revision);

of a hospital, means that hospital's Ethics Committee established or designated under section 42;

means the painless killing by a registered practitioner of a person suffering from an incurable and painful disease or a person in a coma;

includes a duty, power or responsibility;

means a registered practitioner doing either or both of the following —

providing a measure, procedure, service, or medical treatment to diagnose, maintain or treat a physical or mental condition of a person;

withdrawing or withholding a matter mentioned in paragraph (a) (including withdrawing or withholding life-sustaining measures);

means —

a directive-maker, to the extent that the directive-maker is able to express the directive-maker's wishes;

a proxy of the directive-maker;

a registered practitioner providing, or proposing to provide, health care to the directive-maker;

the directive-maker's nearest relative;

any person who satisfies the Ethics Committee that that person has a proper interest in the issue;

means health care intended to sustain or prolong life and that supplants or maintains the operation of vital bodily functions that are temporarily or permanently incapable of independent operation, including —

cardiopulmonary resuscitation;

assisted ventilation;

artificial nutrition and hydration, but does not include a blood transfusion;

means the provision by a doctor of physical, surgical or psychological therapy, including, for example, a doctor —

providing therapy to prevent disease, restore or replace bodily function in the face of disease or injury or to improve comfort and quality of life;

prescribing or supplying medication;

in relation to a person, at a particular time, means that that person is conscious and, during the course of making that person's decisions, has the faculties to be able to —

understand, retain and use relevant information being any information needed to make the decision and to understand its consequences, except for technical or trivial information;

understand the nature and effect of the decision;

communicate the decision in some way;

in relation to a person, at a particular time, means that that person is unable to make a decision as that person does not possess the faculties to be able to —

understand, retain and use relevant information being any information needed to make the decision and to understand its consequences, except for technical or trivial information;

understand the nature and effect of the decision;

communicate the decision in some way;

of a directive-maker, means the person most closely connected to the directive-maker, using the following order of relationships with the directive-maker, and, if there is more than one of any type, priority shall be given to the most senior in age of that type —

spouse;

children;

parents;

siblings;

grandparents;

grandchildren;

uncle or aunt;

nephew or niece;

cousin;

close friend;

the mental health professional treating the directive-maker;

a social worker or probation officer employed in that capacity in Government or a statutory body;

attorney;

includes not having regard, or sufficient regard, in the circumstances to the relevant provisions of this Act;

means a notice in writing;

means a person appointed by a directive-maker to make decisions about that directive-maker's health care;

means a decision made by a proxy in relation to a directive-maker's health care;

means reasonably practicable in all the circumstances;

means an individual registered under the Health Practice Act (2021 Revision) to practice a profession mentioned in Schedules 4 to 7 of that Act;

means a wish expressed by the directive-maker to revoke the directive at any time while the directive-maker was or is mentally competent;

of a directive-maker, means a person who is a legal resident and who is —

the legal husband or wife or civil partner of that person;

a person of the opposite sex who, although not legally married to that person, lives with that person in the same household under the same domestic arrangements as a legal husband or wife and has been so living with that person for a continuous period of five years, and any reference in this Act to marriage or to a married person shall be construed, with the necessary changes being made, so as to give effect to paragraph (a) or (b), as the case may be; but where a person is judicially or otherwise separated from a legal spouse that person shall not be considered to have any other spouse except that legal spouse;

means having an incurable condition caused by injury or disease from which there is no reasonable prospect of a permanent recovery and for which condition —

death would, within reasonable medical judgment, be imminent regardless of life-sustaining measures;

life-sustaining measures would only serve to postpone death;

means an order under section 18;

includes directions and instructions and wishes impliedly expressed, but does not include a wish that is a barred provision of a directive or would be a barred provision had the wish been included in a directive;

means a doctor chosen by a directive-maker to witness the execution of that directive-maker's directive.

Defined Terms

actingadvance health care directiveadvance health care directive principlesappealassisted suicideattorneybarred provisionbest interestbrainstem deathcivilly liableCourtdenydeathdirectivedirective-makerdoctorEthics Committeeeuthanasiafunctionhealth careinterested personlife-sustaining measuresmedical treatmentmentally competentmentally incompetentnearest relativenegligencenoticeproxyproxy decisionreasonably practicableregistered practitionerrevocation wishspouseterminally illtemporary orderwisheswitnessing doctor

Cross References

Section 14 of Unknown
barred provision definition references section 14
Section 35 of Health Practice Act
best interest definition references Health Practice Act (2021 Revision)
Section of Powers Of Attorney Act
attorney definition references Powers of Attorney Act (1996 Revision)
Section of Health Practice Act
doctor definition references Health Practice Act (2021 Revision)
Section 42 of Unknown
Ethics Committee definition references section 42
Section 47 of Unknown
appeal definition references section 47
Section 18 of Unknown
temporary order definition references section 18

Health Care Decisions Act

7 Parts

s.2Interpretation— Health Care Decisions Act (2022 Revision)

Section 2Part 0 —

Interpretation

←→ Navigate · Click subsection badges to collapse · Press ? for help

on a directive, means —

means a document made by a person expressing that person's health care wishes in the event that that person becomes mentally incompetent, including, for example, that that person —

wishes to be denied life-sustaining measures if that person becomes terminally ill;

does not wish to undergo another stated type of health care;

means the principles for applying and making decisions and orders under this Act;

means an appeal under section 47;

means suicide undertaken by a person with the encouragement or assistance of another person;

means the grantee of a power of attorney given under the Powers of Attorney Act (1996 Revision);

means a provision of a directive that is ineffective pursuant to section 14;

of a directive-maker, means the directive-maker's proper health care and the protection of the directive-maker's health interests, having regard to —

the relevant guidelines of the General Medical Council of the United Kingdom;

the codes of standards of professional practice under section 35 of the Health Practice Act (2021 Revision);

means an irreversible loss of the capacity of consciousness combined with the irreversible loss of all brainstem functions, including the capacity to breathe;

includes —

liability for professional misconduct;

susceptibility to sanction or other adverse action for contravening a code of professional ethics or a departure from an accepted form of professional conduct;

means the Grand Court;

in relation to health care to a person, means to withdraw or withhold health care (including life-sustaining measures) from that person;

includes brainstem death and when there is an irreversible cessation of circulation of blood in a person's body;

means —

an advance health care directive generally;

for a provision of this Act about a particular proxy, the directive under which the proxy was appointed;

means —

a person who makes a directive pursuant to this Act;

for a provision of this Act about a particular proxy, the directive-maker who appointed the proxy;

means an individual registered as a medical doctor under Schedule 4 of the Health Practice Act (2021 Revision);

of a hospital, means that hospital's Ethics Committee established or designated under section 42;

means the painless killing by a registered practitioner of a person suffering from an incurable and painful disease or a person in a coma;

includes a duty, power or responsibility;

means a registered practitioner doing either or both of the following —

providing a measure, procedure, service, or medical treatment to diagnose, maintain or treat a physical or mental condition of a person;

withdrawing or withholding a matter mentioned in paragraph (a) (including withdrawing or withholding life-sustaining measures);

means —

a directive-maker, to the extent that the directive-maker is able to express the directive-maker's wishes;

a proxy of the directive-maker;

a registered practitioner providing, or proposing to provide, health care to the directive-maker;

the directive-maker's nearest relative;

any person who satisfies the Ethics Committee that that person has a proper interest in the issue;

cardiopulmonary resuscitation;

assisted ventilation;

artificial nutrition and hydration, but does not include a blood transfusion;

means the provision by a doctor of physical, surgical or psychological therapy, including, for example, a doctor —

providing therapy to prevent disease, restore or replace bodily function in the face of disease or injury or to improve comfort and quality of life;

prescribing or supplying medication;

in relation to a person, at a particular time, means that that person is conscious and, during the course of making that person's decisions, has the faculties to be able to —

understand, retain and use relevant information being any information needed to make the decision and to understand its consequences, except for technical or trivial information;

understand the nature and effect of the decision;

communicate the decision in some way;

in relation to a person, at a particular time, means that that person is unable to make a decision as that person does not possess the faculties to be able to —

understand, retain and use relevant information being any information needed to make the decision and to understand its consequences, except for technical or trivial information;

understand the nature and effect of the decision;

communicate the decision in some way;

spouse;

children;

parents;

siblings;

grandparents;

grandchildren;

uncle or aunt;

nephew or niece;

cousin;

close friend;

the mental health professional treating the directive-maker;

a social worker or probation officer employed in that capacity in Government or a statutory body;

attorney;

includes not having regard, or sufficient regard, in the circumstances to the relevant provisions of this Act;

means a notice in writing;

means a person appointed by a directive-maker to make decisions about that directive-maker's health care;

means a decision made by a proxy in relation to a directive-maker's health care;

means reasonably practicable in all the circumstances;

means an individual registered under the Health Practice Act (2021 Revision) to practice a profession mentioned in Schedules 4 to 7 of that Act;

means a wish expressed by the directive-maker to revoke the directive at any time while the directive-maker was or is mentally competent;

of a directive-maker, means a person who is a legal resident and who is —

the legal husband or wife or civil partner of that person;

means having an incurable condition caused by injury or disease from which there is no reasonable prospect of a permanent recovery and for which condition —

death would, within reasonable medical judgment, be imminent regardless of life-sustaining measures;

life-sustaining measures would only serve to postpone death;

means an order under section 18;

means a doctor chosen by a directive-maker to witness the execution of that directive-maker's directive.

Defined Terms

Cross References

Section 14 of Unknown
barred provision definition references section 14
Section 35 of Health Practice Act
best interest definition references Health Practice Act (2021 Revision)
Section of Powers Of Attorney Act
attorney definition references Powers of Attorney Act (1996 Revision)
Section of Health Practice Act
doctor definition references Health Practice Act (2021 Revision)
Section 42 of Unknown
Ethics Committee definition references section 42
Section 47 of Unknown
appeal definition references section 47
Section 18 of Unknown
temporary order definition references section 18