Moving a loved one into aged care is a challenging and emotional process, and can be an uncertain time for many people. In most cases, there’s a lot to take in, and a lot to organise in a short period of time. So, to help you understand the process, we’ve put together a guide to get you started and help make the right decision for your loved one.
To find out if you’re able to receive government support for residential aged care, you’ll need to be assessed by an Aged Care Assessment Team (ACAT) (known as Aged Care Assessment Services (ACAS) in Victoria).
During the assessment, you’ll be asked questions about your lifestyle and health needs to assess your eligibility for residential aged care. Information will be provided to you about the aged care homes available in your area and more. You may wish to enlist the support of family, friends, your local doctor and social workers to help you find an aged care home that meets your individual needs.
To get in touch with ACAT you can call them directly, or have a loved one or health professional contact them on your behalf. The ACAT/ACAS will complete an assessment that you can provide to any aged care provider that confirms you are eligible for care, and your level of assessed care needs.
You have many choices in how to pay aged care costs including Centrelink. However, you’ll need to complete a Means Test and Assets Test before this can be fully determined.
The Centrelink Means Test and Assets Test can take time, so patience is needed! We encourage you to commence these at the same time you contact the Aged Care Assessment Team/Service so you do not experience any delays.
In addition, we recommend you engage the services of a financial advisor who is an expert in aged care to support you with this process. Everyone’s circumstances are different and a financial advisor can help you make informed financial decisions as you prepare to move into aged care.
Before you visit any aged care home, think about what is important to you. You might like to consider the following:
Your care
Your home and room
Lifestyle
When we first welcome you to visit us, we’ll ask questions to help us understand your individual situation. Please be as open as you can be - the more we learn about you, the better we can assist you. We also encourage you to ask questions about our home, our lifestyle and care. Every question is a good question and it’s important you tell us what matters to you. After the tour, you’ll no doubt have more questions. So, feel free to get in touch with us or take another tour.
When you take a private tour at Strathpine, we’ll ensure you have clear information about the costs of care. These vary depending on individual circumstances so we may need to ask you some questions to give you accurate information. If you have completed your Centrelink, Assets and Means Test, this will help.
We encourage you to take away the information on costs to review and consider. You are welcome to call us with any questions you have, and come back in to discuss the costs in person.
You can apply to Strathpine Aged Care, or any other aged care provider, using the Government application form.
If you decide to apply, once we receive your application form, we will contact you to confirm the rooms we have available suit you and your needs. One we have a suitable room available, we will commence our pre-admission process.
We want you to feel at home. This step is unique to us, and has proven to help our residents feel settled and at home sooner. Our pre-admission process provides support to you and your loved ones to guide you through the challenges of moving into aged care.
We will invite you into the home to discuss your resident agreement in more detail. At this time, we will prepare an individual agreement for you based on your personal needs and financial assessments.
We will follow up on critical paperwork and assessments with you so that we can ensure your fees and charges are accurate. You will be welcome to take the draft agreement and paperwork home to read in more detail and we will answer any questions you have.
It’s a legal requirement that your residential care agreement must be signed before we can proceed further. Once it is signed, we will arrange your pre-admission day.
We invite you and your loved ones to come in for a pre-admission day. Our goal on this day is to complete our assessments and paperwork with you so that we can provide the best care from the day you move in.
You will meet our team, including the registered nurse who will be responsible for your care, and a member of our lifestyle team.
Our care team will spend time with you completing the resident admission pack including resident details, clinical and care needs, and lifestyle preferences.
We will provide you with an orientation of the home. During your orientation we will let you know some of the important aspects of life in the home, such as our laundry service and clothing labeling. We then invite you to enjoy a coffee, afternoon tea or even a meal before you go home.
When you begin to prepare to move in, we encourage you or your loved ones to organise some of your personal preferences ahead of time. This way your home is ready for you to move into and you can settle in with ease.
This varies depending on the person, but examples may include:
You are welcome to discuss all of this with us and we’ll provide whatever support we can.
On the day you move into your new home, we encourage your loved ones to join you for the whole day, including having lunch together, to help you settle in.
As you can imagine, we receive a lot of questions from prospective residents and families, so take a look at our most common queries – we might have even answered some questions you hadn’t thought of yet.
