Consent to Health Care and Medical Treatment Policy
Version 1.0 approved 28 March 2024
The Consent to Health Care and Medical Treatment Policy (PDF 320KB) provides the mandatory requirements with regard to consent to medical treatment and health care within the common law, the Consent to Medical Treatment and Palliative Care Act 1995 (Consent Act), the Advance Care Directives Act 2013 (ACD Act), the Mental Health Act 2009, the Guardianship and Administration Act 1993, and other legislation governing the provision of health care within South Australia relevant to consent.
It is a legal, ethical, and professional requirement that all treating medical and health practitioners ensure informed consent is properly obtained.
Providing medical treatment or health care without valid consent may expose staff to disciplinary, regulatory, professional, civil or criminal proceedings.
Applicability
This policy applies to all health and medical practitioners within SA Health, that is all health and medical practitioners of the Department for Health and Wellbeing (DHW), Local Health Networks (LHNs) including state-wide services aligned with those Networks and SA Ambulance Service (SAAS), when providing medical treatment, medical assessment and/or health care.