Advance care planning is a process of discussing, determining and documenting a person’s preferences for their future care in the event they become unable to make and communicate decisions about their care. Advance care planning is commonly associated with end-of-life care, however, it is also useful for patients with physical, or cognitive impairment or mental illness which could affect their capacity for decision making.

Discharge planning is the development of a personalised plan for a patient leaving a health service and there are a number of considerations for clinicians. Discharge is a transition point along a patient’s health journey which should be considered from the beginning of an episode of care.

Identifying patients who are at risk of harm, and mitigating risks for those patients, is a core part of comprehensive care. Day Procedure Services can implement different strategies to screen, risk assess and mitigate potential risks of harm to patients.

Advance care planning is a process of discussing, determining and documenting a person’s preferences for their future care should they be unable to make and communicate decisions. Advance care planning can benefit patients, their families and carers, clinicians and health service organisations. They support clinicians with respect to clinical treatment and comprehensive care plans, goals of care, and limitations of medical treatment.