For Families

Support for relatives, partners, friends and caregivers who are helping a loved one through serious illness, treatment choices, grief and advance care planning.

For Patients For Families For Medical Professionals

Families

Support the person you love without losing yourself.

Support for relatives, partners, friends and caregivers who are helping a loved one through serious illness, treatment choices, grief and advance care planning.

Finding care

Palliative care and family support

When someone you love has been diagnosed with a life-threatening illness, palliative care can support the whole circle around them. It is designed to help with physical, psychological, social and spiritual needs, and often extends into grief and bereavement support.

Hospices and palliative care centres have their own admission processes, but the national directories below are a useful starting point.

Association of Palliative Care Centres Find hospices and palliative care centres across South Africa. PALPRAC provider search Find a practitioner with palliative care training. CANSA care and support Cancer care, counselling and support programmes. Dementia SA support Virtual help and support groups for people affected by dementia. Love Legacy Dignity Finish Strong courses and end-of-life planning resources. Lymphoedema Association of South Africa Patient support and education for lymphoedema. Motor Neuron Disease Association of South Africa Support and resources for people living with MND and their families. PATCH SA Palliative care support for children and families. Soul Carers Network End-of-life companions and supportive presence.

Find a palliative care centre Find a practitioner

Caregiver support

Courses, burnout support and practical guides

A caregiver can be a family member, friend, neighbour or paid helper who assists someone with a serious or long-term illness. Caregiving may include daily tasks, appointments, home routines and emotional presence.

Caregiver burden is a real risk. The resources below include burnout guidance, caregiver training, grief support and practical guides to the dying process.

PALPRAC Caregiver Support and Wellness Flyer Signs of caregiver burnout and what to do about them. PALPRAC patient and family resources Guidance on conditions and end-of-life concerns. APCC caregiver course Introduction to palliative care for caregivers. Crossing the Creek A practical guide to understanding the dying process. The Grief Handbook A South African practical guide by Bridget McNulty. End Well caregiver guides Short guides for caregivers and families.

Rights and decisions

Withholding or withdrawing life-sustaining care

The National Health Act requires informed consent before health services are provided. If a patient cannot give informed consent, consent may be given by a person mandated in writing, someone authorised by law or court order, or the next person in the statutory family order.

Mandated persons or next of kin are legally empowered to make medical decisions on the patient's behalf, including decisions about withholding or withdrawing life-sustaining treatment. Their preferences should be respected as if the patient were making the decision. The Section 7 Mandate and advance directives section below explains how to document that authority.

Where possible, appoint the trusted person in writing before a crisis. Then share the document and the person's wishes widely with family and healthcare providers.

Section 7 Mandate templates below HPCSA withholding and withdrawal guidance

Advance directives

Legal status and practical value

A Section 7 Mandate is explicitly mentioned in the National Health Act of 2003 and is a legally binding way to appoint a healthcare decision-maker. A living will is not explicitly named in South African law, but it can still guide the mandated person, next of kin and healthcare team when the person cannot speak for themselves.

DignitySA helped initiate the multi-stakeholder Advance Directives Coalition in 2025 to strengthen the legal basis for advance directives in South Africa.

Combined advance directives template Members only — sign up to download Section 7 Mandate template Members only — sign up to download Section 7 Mandate template Members only — sign up to download Advance Directives Planning Guide Members only — sign up to download

Visit Advance Directives Coalition

Conversation starters

Begin with values, not only medical choices

There is never a perfect time to begin end-of-life care planning, and it is also never too early. DignitySA recommends starting with values and quality of life before moving to technical decisions such as resuscitation or specific treatments.

What gives your life purpose and meaning?
What physical or mental abilities make the things you love possible?
If sight, hearing or mobility changed, how might that affect healthcare choices?
Where would you want to be on the last day of your life, and who would you want with you?
Would you want spiritual, cultural or relational support at the end?
How do you want to be remembered?

Explore The Death Deck

Need Help?

We can help point you in the right direction.

If you cannot find what you are looking for, contact DignitySA and we will do our best to connect you with the right information or support.