Aged Services
As you advance in age, there are times you will find it difficult to do your day-to-day activities and you will need some help. Aged care services delivered in your home can help you continue living independently at home, without going to a Residential Aged Care Facility or Aged Care home. There are different types and levels of services funded by the Australian Government available to support you in your journey including:
• The Commonwealth Home Support Program (CHSP). This is suitable for people with basic care needs who live a fairly active life and need only occasional help (e.g. housework, bathing, shopping or attending a social activity) or need short-term, restorative care.
• The Home Care Packages Program (HCPP) or “Packaged Care”. This is suitable for people who are less active and have medium to high level care needs but want to remain living at home. The services in a package are coordinated and tailored to meet your specific needs. There are four levels of care under the HCPP offering different subsidy levels.
You will need to contact My Aged Care, the new Government service set up to provide aged care support. The staff at My Aged Care will conduct an assessment of your care needs and help you access the various services available.
Click here to visit the My Aged Care website or call them on 1800 200 422
Moving to a Residential Care Facility (or Aged Care Home)
The Australian Government also provides financial assistance to people who want to move into a Residential Aged Care Facility (Aged Care Home) to access high levels of care on a consistent basis, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Residential aged care can be offered as either permanent or short-term care. Short-term care in an aged care home is called residential respite care.
Deciding to move into a residential care home is a challenging and emotional decision for the person moving and their family, friends and carers. Accessing residential care can also involve complex financial decisions. The Australian Government has published a helpful guide to helping you make the move to an Aged Care Home called Five Steps to Entry into an Aged Care Home.
These steps include:
1. Assessing your eligibility
2. Finding a suitable aged care home
3. Understanding the fees and charges involved
4. Applying to live in an aged care home
5. Living in an aged care home.
Click here to download the booklet. (link to Five Steps PDF that can be downloaded from ADS website)
Advance Diversity Services is a leading Sydney-based provider of a wide range of community services including in-home health care for elderly Australians and has been delivering quality aged care in the South-East Sydney region for more than 20 years.
Expertise in Culturally-appropriate Care
We specialise in providing care to elderly people from diverse cultural and language (CALD) backgrounds and employ a dedicated team of bilingual aged care professionals who can respond to the specific cultural and spiritual needs of our customers. We tailor our services in a number of ways to meet the important dietary, religious and cultural differences that exist among our diverse community, helping people maintain their important cultural and spiritual traditions.
Helping you understand the new health care changes
The Aged Care system has undergone major changes with the introduction to My Aged Care which serves as a starting point for information and access to any age related services. With the implementation of Consumer Directed Care (CDC) care model, the elderly person receiving the care (the ‘Consumer’) is able to able to make informed decisions about the types and services that are delivered to them. . We work closely with you to help you understand the new changes and to make best use of the government funding support that is available.
Click here to visit the My Aged Care website or call them on 1800 200 422
Providing Pathways to Residential Care
As we age, our care needs can become more complex requiring nursing care around the clock. This can be hard to deliver in the home. Advance Diversity Services can refer you to a range of affordable and quality Residential Care providers to ensure you receive the level of care you need. If your care needs are not complex and you wish to relocate from your home to a Residential Care facility we can help you make that move also – under the new CDC system, the choice is ultimately yours.
Our goal at Advance Diversity Services is to help you, the consumer, get the best possible care whether in your own home or at a Residential Care facility.
Aged Care Services we provide
Basic level care in your home
You can select from any of the following basic level care services we offer (click on the link to get more information):
As a not-for-profit, community-focused organisation we provide a wide range of services that meet your home care needs in a cost-effective way. Our dedicated staff take great pride in their work and in the process develop close connections with our customers, especially people from diverse cultural and language backgrounds. Our staff deliver professional care in ways that are sensitive to your language and cultural needs.
The range of domestic assistance services we offer you at your home includes:
• unaccompanied shopping
• laundry
• light meal preparation
• light cleaning in your home including dusting, vacuuming, mopping
Social isolation can greatly impact a person’s mental, emotional and physical wellbeing. Isolated people tend to be more vulnerable to depression and illness and are at greater risk of accidents at home as no one is keeping an eye out for them. We encourage our customers to get regular visits from family or friends but this is not always possible. Advance Diversity Services can help you remain socially active and engaged through accessing our wide range of social support services that include: social groups, individual social support and centre-based day-care.
We run social support and multicultural day care activities from our centres in Rockdale, Bexley and Sutherland. These programs are very popular and provide opportunities for elderly people from diverse cultural backgrounds to meet with people from their home country, make new friends and converse in their native language. We provide healthy, culturally appropriate and low cost meals to customers of this service and have a fleet of buses to help transport our customers to and from our social support activities.
If you are unable to travel to one of our day-care centres we can provide individual social support for you at your home. One of our bi-lingual staff from your language and cultural background will visit you and provide one-on-one social support, helping you remain socially connected and interacting with people. Our support staff can also help you with a few tasks at home and assist with social outings like going to the park, shopping and having a coffee with friends.
Caring for an elderly loved one can often be a lonely and difficult experience. Carers lose contact with friends, their own life goals and other responsibilities outside of caring and can feel overwhelmed. It is important for carers to get support and maintain their own social networks so they can give their best to their important caring role.
Advance Diversity Services can assist carers in a number of ways including:
• Flexible Respite for carers – we can provide professional support for your loved one while you get a break allowing you to catch up with other responsibilities, meet up with friends, take part in a social activity or just get some rest
• Counselling and support – this can include short-term emotional and psychological support, guidance in your relationship with the person you care for, helping you manage situations and challenging behaviours (e.g. dementia), grief counselling, providing advice on your rights as a carer
• Carers groups – we also provide support groups for carers that are language specific giving them a forum to bring their thoughts, needs concerns and share with like-minded people. Many Carers enjoy coming to these groups as they share their experiences of caring as well as learning from each other.
These services may be provided by qualified professional counsellors or other professionals depending on the type of support you need.
To make best use of the new Aged Care services you need to understand how to use the Internet and have Internet access at home. Internet services like Skype can also help you keep in touch with friends and family anywhere in the world and offers many other benefits such as internet banking, email, keeping up to date with world events and downloading or enjoying music and films.
Advance Diversity Services runs computer and internet classes and can help you with information on subsidised computer courses available at TAFE funded by the NSW Government’s Tech Savvy Seniors Program.
We provide information on Pensioner Discounts available for Internet Plans and are negotiating with internet service providers and computer equipment companies to secure volume purchase discounts that we can pass onto our customers.
Advance Diversity Services are an important resource for people from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) Backgrounds in South Eastern Sydney. We providing a wide range of information related to services for the Aged, people with a disability and their Carers.
We take pride in having a team of culturally proficient Bilingual staff committed to providing a holistic approach in information, advocacy and support that help consumers live independently in their homes. Since the My Aged Care system began in July 2015, our staff have supported many consumers to access the new system and have provided many successful referrals. Our mission is to enable our customers, show them how to make best use of the support available and educate them on any changes as they happen.
We also advocate on behalf of local CALD communities through the Multicultural Access Project that aims to improve access of community services for CALD elderly through community education programs. We deliver training to other service providers on the needs of CALD people to address the emerging needs of CALD communities during the transition to the new Aged Care system.
Packaged Care in your home
Your home care package will include Case Management and assistance with any of the following services (click on the link to get more information). Our staff will consult with you at your initial consultation to work which combination of services you would like to receive as part of your Care Plan to best suit your individual needs:
As a not-for-profit, community-focused organisation we provide a wide range of services that meet your home care needs in a cost-effective way. Our dedicated staff take great pride in their work and in the process develop close connections with our customers, especially people from diverse cultural and language backgrounds. Our staff deliver professional care in ways that are sensitive to your language and cultural needs.
The range of domestic assistance services we offer you at your home includes:
• unaccompanied shopping
• laundry
• light meal preparation
• light cleaning in your home including dusting, vacuuming, mopping
Social isolation can greatly impact a person’s mental, emotional and physical wellbeing. Isolated people tend to be more vulnerable to depression and illness and are at greater risk of accidents at home as no one is keeping an eye out for them. We encourage our customers to get regular visits from family or friends but this is not always possible. Advance Diversity Services can help you remain socially active and engaged through accessing our wide range of social support services that include: social groups, individual social support and centre-based day-care.
We run social support and multicultural day care activities from our centres in Rockdale, Bexley and Sutherland. These programs are very popular and provide opportunities for elderly people from diverse cultural backgrounds to meet with people from their home country, make new friends and converse in their native language. We provide healthy, culturally appropriate and low cost meals to customers of this service and have a fleet of buses to help transport our customers to and from our social support activities.
If you are unable to travel to one of our day-care centres we can provide individual social support for you at your home. One of our bi-lingual staff from your language and cultural background will visit you and provide one-on-one social support, helping you remain socially connected and interacting with people. Our support staff can also help you with a few tasks at home and assist with social outings like going to the park, shopping and having a coffee with friends.
Caring for an elderly loved one can often be a lonely and difficult experience. Carers lose contact with friends, their own life goals and other responsibilities outside of caring and can feel overwhelmed. It is important for carers to get support and maintain their own social networks so they can give their best to their important caring role.
Advance Diversity Services can assist carers in a number of ways including:
• Flexible Respite for carers – we can provide professional support for your loved one while you get a break allowing you to catch up with other responsibilities, meet up with friends, take part in a social activity or just get some rest
• Counselling and support – this can include short-term emotional and psychological support, guidance in your relationship with the person you care for, helping you manage situations and challenging behaviours (e.g. dementia), grief counselling, providing advice on your rights as a carer
• Carers groups – we also provide support groups for carers that are language specific giving them a forum to bring their thoughts, needs concerns and share with like-minded people. Many Carers enjoy coming to these groups as they share their experiences of caring as well as learning from each other.
These services may be provided by qualified professional counsellors or other professionals depending on the type of support you need.
To make best use of the new Aged Care services you need to understand how to use the Internet and have Internet access at home. Internet services like Skype can also help you keep in touch with friends and family anywhere in the world and offers many other benefits such as internet banking, email, keeping up to date with world events and downloading or enjoying music and films.
Advance Diversity Services runs computer and internet classes and can help you with information on subsidised computer courses available at TAFE funded by the NSW Government’s Tech Savvy Seniors Program.
We provide information on Pensioner Discounts available for Internet Plans and are negotiating with internet service providers and computer equipment companies to secure volume purchase discounts that we can pass onto our customers.
Advance Diversity Services are an important resource for people from Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) Backgrounds in South Eastern Sydney. We providing a wide range of information related to services for the Aged, people with a disability and their Carers.
We take pride in having a team of culturally proficient Bilingual staff committed to providing a holistic approach in information, advocacy and support that help consumers live independently in their homes. Since the My Aged Care system began in July 2015, our staff have supported many consumers to access the new system and have provided many successful referrals. Our mission is to enable our customers, show them how to make best use of the support available and educate them on any changes as they happen.
We also advocate on behalf of local CALD communities through the Multicultural Access Project that aims to improve access of community services for CALD elderly through community education programs. We deliver training to other service providers on the needs of CALD people to address the emerging needs of CALD communities during the transition to the new Aged Care system.
Dementia affects over 350,000 Australians. There are an estimated 1,800 new cases of dementia every week. By 2050 this is expected to reach 7,400 cases per week. Dementia is the single greatest cause of disability for the elderly in Australia and the second leading cause of death. There is no known cure for this debilitating disease. Dementia sufferers require higher level care.
Our staff are trained to help support aged consumers with dementia. We work closely with the consumer and their family/carer to create a safe home environment by identifying and addressing hazards. Our staff are trained to identify the symptoms of dementia (e.g. memory loss, poor recall of recent events, inability to recognize people and places) and report any changes to their Case Manager so a medical assessment can be arranged. We explain the additional financial support options available for a person diagnosed with dementia (e.g. the Dementia Supplement) and work with the person’s family to get that additional support in place. Our registered nurses will conduct a dementia assessment for you in your home.
Keeping your mind active is a key to fighting dementia. We work with dementia customers to provide them with mental puzzles (crosswords, sudoku, etc.) and engage them in the various social activities we provide and offer a range of respite services for carers of aged customers with dementia.
Daily tasks of personal hygiene and grooming can become increasingly difficult to manage as we age. These can also become a challenge when we are recovering from an illness or injury, or are living with a disability. Our professional staff can assist you with a range of personal care services including helping you with showering, getting dressed, eating your meals or having your hair cut.
The caring staff of Advance Diversity Services are required to have a car and a valid drivers’ licence and can assist you with visits to your Doctor or attending an appointment (e.g. with an Allied Health professional such as a Podiatrist or Occupational Therapist). Our staff will pick you up from your nominated location and drive you to your destination before transporting you safely back to your home. We can also assist with transportation via public transport, either by travelling with you to appointments or by providing you with training on using public transport.
Allied Health services provide a range of additional support usually developed in consultation with your doctor. These can include podiatry treatments, physiotherapy to relieve chronic pain, advice from a dietician to identify ways to improve your diet, occupational therapy to identify tasks you can do at home to improve your mobility and independence and other specialist services that can help support your health and well-being needs.
Our professional staff will assist you in accessing these services, including conducting comprehensive assessments and development of a therapy program to be included in your care plan. Where possible we will arrange for these services to be delivered in your home or can arrange transport to your Allied Health appointments and safely back home.
We can help you with a range of home maintenance tasks to help you stay in your own home. Home maintenance can include things like lawn mowing, changing light bulbs, installing an emergency alarm or doing some minor repairs.
We can also help you with modifications to your home to make your home safer and more secure and also assist you with day-to-day activities. Home modifications can include the installation of:
• grab and shower rails
• easy-to-use tap sets
• hand rails
• ramps and other mobility aids
• emergency alarms and other safety aids
• other minor renovations.
Home modifications must be installed by a licensed tradesperson. We can refer you to someone appropriate.
There is a wide range of equipment available to you to help you in the home including walking frames, shower chairs, commodes and wheelchairs. Advance Diversity Services will refer you for an Occupational Therapy assessment to identify which equipment or physical aids can best help you at home. We work with you, showing you ways to manage your care budget and pay for these items. We also have equipment you can rent at a subsidised cost making these aids even more affordable.
As we age our eyesight deteriorates and we can develop illnesses such as dementia making us more vulnerable to accidents, especially in the home. One of the things that Advance Diversity Services concentrates on with each new customer is to identify the hazards that exist in your home (e.g. slip areas, wet areas, trip and fall hazards) by conducting a Risk Assessment and take steps to minimise or remove these hazards. Additional home security measures can also be implemented (e.g. security screens and doors, intercom or CCTV systems) to meet your needs and budget.
Accidents can occur at any time and it is important to be able to access help when you need it. Advance Diversity Services offers a 24 hour a day, seven days a week emergency care response service which is just a telephone call away.
We can also offer more sophisticated monitoring services developed by our technology partners Feros Care. These monitoring systems include a range of sensors that can trigger a call to a 24/7 response centre or designated carer if assistance is required. The Feros Care Telehealth home monitoring products include emergency pendants, movement sensors, door, bed and chair occupancy sensors, reminder calls, smoke, gas, flood and temperature extreme sensors. These technologies can provide peace of mind for you and your family in dealing with falls and the risks of living alone or managing problems associated with health issues such as diabetes, dementia, epilepsy, chronic disease, physical disability and post hospitalisation care.
The Australian Government subsidises a large part of the cost of accessing Aged Care services in your home. The amount of subsidy varies by the level of care you need. If your personal circumstances allow, it is expected that you will contribute towards the cost of your care. Additional assistance is available for people in financial hardship to help cover the cost of accessing aged care services in your home.
Depending upon your financial circumstances you may need to pay a basic daily fee of up to 17.5% of the single basic Age Pension or an income-tested care fee if your income is over a certain amount.
The Help at Home: costs explained brochure helps explain the costs involved in accessing home care services. Click here to download the brochure [link to Help at Home: costs explained]
You can use the Australian Government’s home care fee estimator to help estimate what you need to pay for your home care services. Click on the link below:
Advance Diversity Services will also help explain the costs involved in accessing home care services when you contact us about helping you with home care services.
FINANCIAL HELP
Many elderly members of the community are already struggling to meet the rising costs of living, especially the soaring cost of housing in major cities like Sydney, and are not in a great position to help cover the cost of their home care services. Advance Diversity Services understands these issues and can help people in financial disadvantage gain additional support to cover the cost of getting help in their home.
We consider your basic living needs when setting fees and link you with other services to facilitate access to affordable services and activities. We explain how to access the Hardship Supplement to help reduce care fees and outline other support services in your area, many of which we can offer directly to you, such as Emergency Relief, Energy Accounts Payment Assistance (EAPA) Vouchers, Telstra vouchers and access to subsidised social housing, etc. We provide information on the NSW Government Senior’s Card detailing discounts on services and purchases.
As a not-for-profit, community-based service provider, our Aged Care services are typically priced lower than many other service providers (particularly the larger for-profit companies). Our goal is not to deny you care or access to our services because of an inability to pay for reasons beyond your control
Our experience shows that people prefer to remain at home as they age so they can remain close to important social supports established over a lifetime and keep accessing familiar and trusted services in their neighbourhood.
Our focus is to help you age well in your own home. We provide an extensive range of in-home care services complemented by a wide range of day care, social support and carer respite services run from our centres in Bexley, Rockdale and Sutherland.
“Wellness, Re-ablement and Independence”
You will probably be hearing these words a lot in the coming years. The government has identified these as important goals for people so they can age well, reduce their reliance on aged care services and have a better quality of life into old age.
Wellness means encouraging you to do as much for yourself as possible to improve your social, emotional and physical wellbeing. Our staff will sit down with you to find out what your strengths, abilities and needs are and help you set achievable goals to support these as part of the process in developing your care plan. Your progress is reviewed at regular intervals and possible changes are discussed that can be implemented to your care plan to help you better achieve your wellness goals.
Re-ablement involves the use of assessments and targeted interventions in a timely manner to help you maximise your independence, choice, and quality of life. For example, this could involve accessing the services of an Occupational Therapist to provide rehabilitation exercises after a serious fall, hip replacement or stroke, or getting grab rails installed in your bathroom so you can more easily manage your personal hygiene. Our staff can help you develop your re-ablement goals which become an important part of your care plan.
Independence we offer a range of support services to help you become more independent such as support with affordable transport, helping you purchase and learn how to use a walking frame or wheelchair, or taking part in our very popular day care and social support activities. By making progress on your wellness and re-ablement goals you will also achieve a greater level of independence.
Click here to download our Aged Care information brochure for more information on our services. [link to ADS Home Care PDF brochure]
Click here for the My Aged Care government website for more information on the changes to Aged Care services
Click here for the Council on the Ageing website
Click here for the Home Care Today website for more information on Consumer Directed Care
GETTING HELP IN YOUR LANGUAGE
Multilingual Hotline (02) 9505 7601
Advance Diversity Services provides a Multilingual Hotline where you can get advice from bilingual staff in your own language. The Hotline operates Monday to Friday from 10am to 3pm and covers the following languages:
• Italian (Monday 10am to 3pm)
• Arabic (Tuesday 10am to 3pm)
• Macedonian, Serbian, Croatian and Bosnian (Wednesday 10am to 3pm)
• Chinese (Thursday 10am to 3pm)
• Greek (Friday 10am to 3pm)
For other languages please call the Telephone Interpreter Service (TIS) on 131 450.
News
ADS would like to announce that it now has funding to provide NEW home support services to older people and their carers living in the South East Sydney region.
