Digital ACP Is Changing Care: How Technology Is Making Advance Care Planning Easier, Safer, and More Personal

Advance Care Planning (ACP) has always been about one thing: making sure your care reflects your values, even if you can’t speak for yourself. But as healthcare becomes more connected, and as our lives move increasingly online, the way we document and share those preferences is changing.

Enter the era of Digital ACP — secure online platforms that make it easier to create, update, and share your care preferences across hospitals, GPs, aged-care services, and even with loved ones interstate.

From paperwork in drawers to plans in the cloud, digital advance care planning is quietly transforming how Australians prepare for their future care. This article explores how technology is reshaping ACP through three lenses: accessibility, emergency readiness, and family communication — and how you can use these tools today to make your voice heard when it matters most.

What Is Advance Care Planning — and What Makes It “Digital”?

Advance Care Planning is the process of thinking about, discussing, and recording your values and preferences for future medical care. It often includes completing an Advance Care Directive (ACD) — a legal document that outlines your healthcare wishes — and appointing an Enduring Guardian or substitute decision-maker to act on your behalf if you lose capacity.

Traditionally, this process involved paper forms, long appointments, and file folders tucked away in drawers. But a digital ACP approach brings this process online — allowing you to:

• Create and sign your ACD electronically
• Store your plan securely in the cloud
• Share it instantly with your GP, hospital or aged-care home
• Update it whenever your circumstances or preferences change 

In Australia, the My Health Record system now allows you to upload your Advance Care Plan so it’s accessible to treating clinicians in an emergency (Australian Digital Health Agency).

Platforms like Evaheld go even further — helping you complete, sign, and share your plan digitally, link it to your emergency QR card, and ensure the latest version is visible to your healthcare team.

Digital ACP doesn’t change the heart of advance care planning — it just removes the friction, helps your plan stay current, and ensures your care preferences are seen when they’re needed most.

Why Australia Is Moving Toward Digital ACP

Several forces are driving this shift:

1. Technology adoption: Most Australians already manage health appointments, prescriptions, and vaccination records online. Bringing ACP into this digital ecosystem is a natural next step.
2. National policy support: Both the Australian Digital Health Agency and Advance Care Planning Australia encourage digital storage and sharing of ACDs to ensure care aligns with people’s wishes.
3. Emergency preparedness: The COVID-19 pandemic revealed how critical it is for clinicians to access care preferences instantly — even when family members aren’t present.
4. Equity and inclusion: Digital tools make ACP more accessible to Australians in rural, regional, or mobility-restricted settings, who might otherwise struggle to complete paper forms or visit facilitators in person.
5. Changing expectations: Australians increasingly want control, choice, and dignity in care — and digital systems make it easier to exercise that control proactively.
6. Put simply, digital ACP helps move care planning from “good to have” to “impossible to ignore.”

Making Advance Care Planning More Accessible

One of the biggest barriers to ACP has always been complexity — people either don’t know where to start, or find it too bureaucratic. Digital ACP platforms change that by bringing planning to your fingertips.

1. Start Anywhere, Anytime

Whether you’re at home, on your phone, or sitting with a loved one, you can now begin your ACP online. Some state health departments (like NSW Health and SA Health) even provide downloadable templates that integrate easily with online platforms.

Tools like Evaheld’s digital vault make it simple to upload existing directives, add your Enduring Guardian’s contact details, and set reminders to review your plan every year or after major life changes.

2. Update Without the Hassle

Life evolves — and your plan should too. Digital ACP platforms let you revise your plan easily when your health changes, when you move interstate, or when your treatment preferences shift.

You can update it instantly and share the revised version with everyone who needs it — without having to reprint or re-witness forms. This ensures your clinicians always see the most current document, avoiding confusion during critical care moments.

3. Secure Storage and Instant Retrieval

Digital ACP systems use encrypted storage and access permissions to ensure privacy. Unlike paper forms that can be lost or damaged, your plan lives securely online — backed up and retrievable anytime.

In many cases, digital ACPs can be linked directly to your My Health Record, so authorised clinicians can view your preferences 24/7, whether you’re in an emergency room in Sydney or a regional aged-care facility in Dubbo.

Improving Emergency Readiness

Emergencies are when ACP matters most — but also when paperwork tends to fail.

Imagine you’re admitted after a serious car accident. Paramedics or emergency doctors often have seconds to make critical decisions. If your plan is stored digitally, it can appear on their screen instantly — ensuring that your care follows your values.

1. Real-Time Access for Clinicians

Digital ACPs linked with My Health Record or integrated systems allow clinicians to retrieve key information immediately:

• Whether you consent to resuscitation or certain treatments
• Who your substitute decision-maker is
• Any spiritual or cultural care preferences

A 2024 scoping review of global ACP systems found that electronic access dramatically increased compliance with patient wishes and reduced unwanted hospital interventions (BMC Medicine, 2024).

2. QR and ICE Technology

Modern systems like Evaheld let you generate QR emergency cards or In-Case-of-Emergency (ICE) links that store your plan securely. These can be kept in your wallet, phone, or medical ID bracelet — allowing paramedics and hospitals to access your ACP securely in seconds.

3. Better Continuity Across Care Settings

Many Australians transition between care settings — hospital, home care, palliative care, and aged-care homes. Traditionally, ACP documents would get misplaced along the way.

Now, integrated digital ACP platforms ensure the same plan follows you everywhere. Your GP, specialists, and aged-care providers can access the same up-to-date document, reducing errors and ensuring smoother handovers.

Strengthening Family Communication and Reducing Stress

Perhaps the most human benefit of digital ACP is the peace of mind it brings to families.

1. Clear Sharing with Loved Ones

You can now give your Enduring Guardian, family members, or close friends secure access to your plan. This transparency means they can understand your wishes before a crisis — and feel confident honouring them if needed.

In Evaheld, for instance, you can set permissions for who can view or download your plan. Everyone sees the same version, which helps prevent confusion or disagreements later on.

2. Encouraging Conversations That Matter

Because digital ACP tools are accessible and easy to navigate, they make it simpler to have meaningful conversations about what matters most — not just medical treatments, but also values, beliefs, comfort, and dignity.

Advance Care Planning Australia encourages families to use online tools as “conversation starters” — prompts that guide discussion rather than replace it. Digital ACP supports this by giving you a place to record what you discuss and share it safely afterward.

3. Reducing Family Conflict and Anxiety

When wishes are clearly recorded and easily available, families experience less uncertainty and guilt. In emergencies, decisions are made confidently, based on what you wanted.

That clarity is a gift — both for you and those you love.

The Australian Framework for Digital ACP

Australia has one of the world’s most supportive environments for digital care planning. Key components include:

• My Health Record Integration: You can upload your ACD or ACP document and add “custodians” (trusted contacts) who will be notified when updates occur.

• Advance Care Planning Australia: A national program funded by the Department of Health, providing guidance, templates, and education.

• State/Territory Variations: Each state (NSW, VIC, SA, QLD, WA, etc.) has its own forms and witnessing rules for ACDs, but most now accept scanned or electronic copies under the Electronic Transactions Act 1999 (Cth).

• Digital Health and Aged Care Reforms: The Australian Digital Health Agency continues to invest in making My Health Record interoperable with private digital ACP providers, such as Evaheld and Touchstone Life Care.

• Together, these systems are building a future where every Australian’s care plan is accessible when and where it’s needed most.

Addressing Common Concerns

“Is it secure?”

Yes. Accredited platforms follow strict Australian privacy and encryption standards. My Health Record, for example, uses two-factor authentication, access logs, and user consent to protect sensitive data.

“Do I still need a physical copy?”

It’s wise to keep one, especially if your state still requires a witnessed hard-copy ACD. But storing it digitally ensures it’s never lost and can be shared instantly.

“Will hospitals actually look at it?”

If your ACP is uploaded to My Health Record or a recognised platform, clinicians are prompted to check it. In many hospitals, ACP alerts now appear automatically in the patient record.

“What if I move interstate?”

Digital ACP helps overcome jurisdictional boundaries — your document can travel with you, even if you move between states or healthcare systems.

The Future of Care Is Personal — and Digital

The next chapter of digital ACP is already unfolding:

• AI-powered assistants that help you explore values and complete your directive step-by-step

• Automatic reminders to review your plan every two years

• Integration with telehealth platforms so your GP can update your ACP during a virtual consult

• Analytics dashboards that help health systems measure how well care aligns with patient wishes

• These innovations don’t replace the human side of care planning — they enhance it, ensuring technology supports compassion, not bureaucracy.

Getting Started

If you’ve been meaning to “get around” to your Advance Care Plan, there’s never been a better time. Here’s how to begin:

• Reflect on what matters most — quality of life, independence, comfort, family time.

• Talk to your loved ones — have open, honest conversations about your values and preferences.

• Appoint an Enduring Guardian or substitute decision-maker who understands your views.

• Create or upload your Advance Care Directive using a trusted digital platform like Evaheld.

• Share and store it safely — add it to your My Health Record and notify your GP.

• Review it every year or after major life changes.

• Advance Care Planning isn’t just about the end of life — it’s about living according to your values at every stage.

Final Thoughts

Digital ACP is reshaping how Australians express and protect their care choices. It bridges the gap between intent and action, between paper and practice, between silence and shared understanding.

With secure technology and human compassion working hand in hand, your care can finally reflect you — not just your condition.

Because when your voice is heard, even in silence, that’s when care becomes truly personal.