Assisted dying, or voluntary assisted dying, is an additional end-of-life choice that provides eligible people who are suffering and dying with the option of asking for medical assistance to end their lives. It is always voluntary and involves strict eligibility criteria and multiple assessments

Many people in the community are not familiar with the eligibility criteria and the many legal steps required to achieve an assisted death. This environment has allowed misinformation and inaccurate hearsay to fill the gap.

The guidelines (available as a downloadable pdf via the button below) are intended for use as a Media Toolkit in Australia and New Zealand. (In Australia the term used is ‘voluntary assisted dying’; in New Zealand it is ‘assisted dying’). They were created to provide media professionals and commentators with practical advice on how to report on end-of-life choice accurately, ethically and respectfully and counter some of the misinformation.