SCENARIO 1 - Planning for the future of a parent with dementia
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Tony is 80 years of age and suffering from the early stages of dementia.
He lives at home and receives support from his daughters Diana and Margaret. Recently Tony had a fall and has found a number of people from his church to help him around the house with his daily needs.
Tony is having trouble remembering to pay the bills, he can't keep track of who is assisting him and he has started sending his carers down to the bank with cheques to cash for him several times a week. Tony's house has steep stairs and he is in danger of further falls but won't move out and won't allow anyone to modify the house to make it safer for him.
When Diana and Margaret try to help, Tony threatens to leave all his money to the church. Diana and Margaret are worried about Tony. They are worried he is being ripped off financially. They are worried that the services he is receiving are not adequate as he is often unkempt and there is no food in the house. They also think he is at risk in the house without safety modifications being made.
Possible advice for Diana and Margaret
Diana and Margaret could ask the members of Tony's church to meet with them to talk about their concerns. They could talk about better and safer ways of supporting Tony and how they can all work together to ensure that the people who support Tony do their job properly.
Diana and Margaret could ask everyone concerned about Tony to come together regularly to talk about how to assist Tony and keep him safe. This group could become a support circle for Tony and can be made up of family, close friends and church members. The law in Queensland encourages people to assist those who have difficulty making decisions. Assisting people like this is called "informal decision-making". An example of informal decision-making would be a member of the support circle helping Tony with his money.
Diana and Margaret could ask Tony to consider appointing them his Attorneys under an Enduring Power of Attorney. An Enduring Power of Attorney would give Diana and Margaret legal authority to manage Tony's money and to make personal decisions for him. Even though Tony is in the early stages of Dementia, he might still be able to sign an Enduring Power of Attorney. But first, Diana and Margaret would need to get advice from a solicitor with experience in preparing and witnessing an Enduring Power of Attorney.
If workable informal arrangements cannot be organised, and Tony's needs cannot be met in any other way, and Tony is not willing or is not able to sign an Enduring Power of Attorney, Diana and Margaret could make an application to the Queensland Guardianship and Administration Tribunal. They could apply to be Tony's Guardians and financial Administrators. The Guardianship and Administration Tribunal could only step in if Tony lacks the ability ("capacity") to make the relevant decisions on his own. In Tony's case, a Guardian would probably be limited to decisions about where Tony lives, who comes into his home and who provides paid support to him.
If Diana and Margaret were appointed Guardians with those powers, they could make changes to Tony's support arrangements and allow tradespeople into his house to carry out modifications. As financial administrators they could manage his money and pay for those modifications. If the house becomes unsuitable for Tony, they could sell it and help Tony move to another home.
In making all of these decisions, Diana and Margaret would be required to consult with Tony. They would need to take into account his wishes and to involve other members of the family and his close friends. They should only make decisions which have the least affect on Tony's rights.
The Guardianship and Administration Tribunal could appoint other people as Tony's guardians and or his financial administrators. The Guardianship and Administration Tribunal might do this if Diana and Margaret did not want to be appointed or if the Guardianship and Administration Tribunal thought others were more appropriate for Tony.