19 May 2026
General practice plays a key role in delivering timely, coordinated and compassionate palliative and end‑of‑life care in the community.
A range of updated tools and resources are available to support GPs with symptom management, prescribing, and advance care planning conversations.
On this page:
Updated palliMEDS app: supporting palliative care prescribing
The palliMEDS app, a trusted resource for generalist prescribers, has recently been updated to include:
- Prescribing information for paediatric patients, and
- Expanded prescribing guidance for adults
These updates further strengthen the app as a practical tool to support community‑based palliative care, helping GPs manage symptoms promptly and appropriately.
Developed through a collaboration between caring@home and QuoCCA, the free palliMEDS app provides evidence‑based prescribing guidance for common terminal symptoms.
The app supports timely and effective symptom management for patients approaching end of life, particularly in the home setting.
Advance care planning resources in general practice
Advance care planning is an essential part of high‑quality end‑of‑life care, and general practice is well placed to initiate and support these conversations.
Advance Care Planning Australia has developed a suite of professional resources to support GPs, including:
- General practice considerations guidance, with practical advice and tools to support advance care planning discussions in everyday practice.
- A factsheet on the use of relevant Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS) items, outlining how advance care planning activities can be appropriately supported and claimed.
These resources are designed to help GPs integrate advance care planning into routine care, supporting patients to articulate their values, preferences and goals for future treatment.
