The majority of seniors choose to age in their own homes instead of in aged care facilities. However, some of these seniors are living alone in their homes and need care support from a home healthcare franchise to do daily chores and activities. As the population ages, care for the elderly is increasingly needed. Fortunately, there is a program that is designed to provide support to the elderly in their own homes.
Home Care Packages support the elderlies with their needs, helping them to live with ease in their homes. This article will talk about the essential things about how this program works and who is eligible for the program.
What does this program offer?
Older people who want to live the rest of their lives in their home may receive a home care package depending on their needs. It provides appropriate care for each senior by using a consumer-directed care approach.
The support provided by the program includes:
- Equipment (such as walkers)
- Personal care
- Help with household chores
- Minor home modification
- Clinical care (allied health and physiotherapy services, nursing)
These packages have four levels – from level one (basic care needs) to level four (high care needs). Only approved providers can work with the care recipients to organize, plan, and provide Home Care Packages.
How does it work?
The Department of Health providers assign the care packages to elders. The care recipient can choose the best provider in their area that could meet their needs. The recipient can also take their package if they want a new provider.
Home Care Packages are highly in-demand, and a senior may need to wait for a long time before getting a package. Seniors who have approved for a package in the government’s national priority system will be prioritized, and this is based on their assessed priority for home care (should be medium or high) and their approval date.
The care recipient may opt for an interim package while waiting for the availability of their assigned level of the package. It means they can start receiving services at a lower level at an earlier time. The government will let the care recipient and provider know when the approved level of package is available and automatically upgrade their interim package.
Who is eligible for the package?
A Regional Assessment team will do a Commonwealth Home Support Programme assessment. Once assessed as in need of higher care, an Aged Care Assessment Team (ACAT) will do another evaluation for the recipient’s eligibility for residential care and the packages. Usually, these assessors are allied health or nursing professionals who are trained to identify the needs of an elderly according to the guidelines from the government.
They will conduct a thorough test of the elderly’s physical and mental ability to manage at home. It will let the assessor know the elder’s needs and suggest the type of services is best to support them, such as personal or physiotherapy care.
The assessor will also consider the elder’s personal preferences and informal care levels. These are care that is coming from family members, friends, or neighbours who are helping them with cleaning, shopping and other household tasks.
Aging at home gives older people ease and comfortable living. While some of them don’t want to go away from the sweet memories in their home, some would love to keep doing the things they used to do every day. Aging may prevent them from their freedom to do what they want, but the care providers are always there to support them.
