FACT: WA has a first-class standard of palliative care, which includes high-quality community care in metropolitan Perth provided by Silver Chain. 

There is no doubt the palliative care sector’s dedicated professionals are committed and dedicated to their patients.

Australia has a first-class standard of palliative care, second only to the United Kingdom in world rankings, and while WA’s geography does cause serious challenges in our regional and remote areas, WA generally has an excellent standard of palliative care.

In WA’s the State Government funds a service to provide community-based specialist palliative care at no out-of-pocket cost to the patient. The home and community palliative care model is currently delivered by Silver Chain in the metropolitan area. Silver Chain is a hospital-level accredited service.

Silver Chain:

• does not oppose nor support voluntary assisted dying;
• is committed to supporting patient choice, and recognises voluntary assisted dying as a legitimate option for those nearing end of life where supporting legislation exists;
• would not itself look to provide voluntary assisted dying services if voluntary assisted dying becomes legal in Western Australia;
• will continue to provide end of life care and support to individuals who choose voluntary assisted dying both in the lead up to their death, and following their death, through the provision of bereavement support to their families and carers; and
• strongly advocates for access to quality palliative care for all people nearing the end of their life, irrespective of their position on voluntary assisted dying.