EAAA's position statement on supported decision-making

EAAA strongly advocates the adoption of supported decision-making as a human rights-affirming principle and a practical approach that enables older people to exercise their own decision-making autonomy. It is a process that assists rather than replaces personal choice and control and should guide the actions of informal and formal carers, allies, service providers of all kinds, advocates, law and policy makers and those who implement them.  

EAAA recognises that decision-making autonomy is a fundamental human right and one that is frequently diminished in the lives of older people. This may be due to a lack of awareness, inadvertent paternalism, or malevolent actions driven by ageism, discrimination, greed and other human failings.    

We acknowledge the voices of many older people who have raised with EAAA and our members the devastating impacts on their lives when their views and decisions have been ignored, or when they have been denied access to information that would enable them to make their own well-informed decisions. 

We acknowledge that, like people of all ages, making decisions can involve risks and that we all have different risk appetites. An individual’s approach to risk-taking should not be shaped by age or disability, but by personal preference. We do not automatically lose appetite for risk-taking. We do not shed our lifelong inherent natures and personalities; some of us are wise, some reckless, some adventurous, some timid, and so on.  We acknowledge that the duty of care shown to older people must be balanced with their rights to choose risks.   

EAAA will take every opportunity to promote the protection of the right to autonomy for older people. EAAA also recognises that the complexity of human relationships and circumstances mean that making decisions and finding solutions to problems will frequently be challenging.  

We advocate for Australia-wide access to local services that can provide respectful, skilled, and practical support for carers and others in implementing supported decision-making practices that uphold autonomy and dignity. 

Download our full position statement on supported decision-making.