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This is a Bill, not an Act. For current law, see the Acts databases.
South Australia
Consent to Medical Treatment and Palliative Care
(Parental Consent) Amendment Bill 2010
A BILL FOR
An Act to amend the Consent
to Medical Treatment and Palliative Care Act 1995.
Contents
Part 1—Preliminary
1Short
title
2Amendment provisions
Part 2—Amendment of Consent to Medical
Treatment and Palliative Care Act 1995
3Amendment of section
3—Objects
4Amendment of section
4—Interpretation
5Amendment of section 6—Legal competence to
consent to medical treatment
6Substitution of section
12
12Administration of
medical treatment to a child
The Parliament of South Australia enacts as
follows:
This Act may be cited as the Consent to Medical Treatment and Palliative
Care (Parental Consent) Amendment Act 2010.
In this Act, a provision under a heading referring to the amendment of a
specified Act amends the Act so specified.
Part 2—Amendment
of Consent to Medical Treatment and Palliative
Care Act 1995
3—Amendment
of section 3—Objects
Section 3(a)(i)—delete "16 years" and substitute:
18 years, and certain persons of or over the age of
16 years,
4—Amendment
of section 4—Interpretation
(1) Section 4, definition of child—delete "16" and
substitute:
18
(2) Section 4—after the definition of guardian
insert:
independent minor means a child who is of or over the age of
16 years, but under the age of 18 years, who lives independently of
his or her parents or guardians;
(3) Section 4—after the definition of parent
insert:
prescribed medical treatment means any of the following
medical treatment:
(a) medical treatment involving hospitalisation;
(b) medical treatment involving surgery;
(c) medical treatment prescribed by regulation.
5—Amendment
of section 6—Legal competence to consent to medical
treatment
(1) Section 6—delete "A" and substitute:
Subject to subsection (2), a
(2) Section 6—after its present contents (now to be designated as
subsection (1)) insert:
(2) Subsection (1) does not apply to the making of decisions about
prescribed medical treatment by a child who is not an independent
minor.
Section 12—delete the section and substitute:
12—Administration of medical treatment to a
child
(1) A medical
practitioner may administer medical treatment to a child if—
(a) the child consents
to the treatment and—
(i) the child is an independent minor; or
(ii) the child is of or over 16 years of age and the treatment
proposed to be administered is not prescribed medical treatment; or
(b) if
paragraph (a) does
not apply—the parent or guardian of the child consents; or
(c) if
paragraph (a) does
not apply and no parent or guardian can be contacted within a reasonable
time—
(i) the child consents; and
(ii) the medical practitioner who is to administer the treatment is of the
opinion that the child is capable of understanding the nature, consequences and
risks of the treatment and that the treatment is in the best interests of the
child's health and well-being; and
(iii) that opinion is supported by the written opinion of at least 1 other
medical practitioner who personally examines the child before the treatment is
commenced.
(2)
Subsection (1)(c)
only applies where reasonable efforts have been made by the medical
practitioner, in good faith, to contact a parent or guardian of the
child.