Life Matters

Aged care workers around Australia have been celebrated as part of Aged Care Employee Day on Sunday 7 August.

Heritage Care’s new aged care home in Northcote, Melbourne, has welcomed its first resident. Brian Comas (pictured centre) has moved into Heritage Northcote, supported by his wife Irmgard and daughters Yvette and Letitia. According to Brian, the staff were attentive and thoughtful on his first day at his new home.

There’s a new name for a prominent aged care legal advocacy group, with Aged-care Legal Advocacy & Reform Matter (ALARM) revealing its new, snappier branding: Aged Care Justice.

They couldn’t get to the Queensland Agricultural Show themselves – but residents at Bolton Clarke Inverpine aged care home still got the Ekka experience when the show came to them.

The Movember Foundation has launched a confronting new video to highlight the high suicide rate for men. Called ‘Suicide notes talk too late’, the video is designed to encourage men not to keep silent when things get hard and reach out to others.

An 81-year-old Carinity Home Care client has released a second print run of her memoir discussing her mental health issues and experience with childhood sexual abuse.

Not For Profit provider Bolton Clarke has showcased aged care and retirement living options to Brisbane seniors at its first ever Bolton Clarke Moreton Shores Seniors Expo. The expo, which included stalls on Bolton Clarke services as well as mobility scooters, ready meals, local community groups and men’s sheds, and other organisations, aimed to provide a “one-stop-shop” for seniors’ questions on different areas of ageing and support, said Assistant Village Manager Debbie Grice.

Regis Hurstville in Sydney has established a relationship with Gumnut Early Learning Centre to form connections between residents and kids. With intergenerational activities providing benefits to both old and young people, the provider says it has been very fortunate to work with Gumnut for a recent meet-up. “Our residents were delighted to be greeted by the kids in both Chinese and English and the storytelling from both generations was a real highlight for everyone.

Killarney Memorial Aged Care (KMAC), in Queensland’s Southern Downs, will be able to build a new memory support unit thanks to a generous donation.

A new pilot program from HammondCare and Greyhound Rescue will see aged care residents – including those with dementia – given support and engagement from rescued greyhounds. Funded by a grant from Australian Ethical, the Australian-first Hounds Helping Humans program will run as a pilot at select HammondCare homes with specially selected residents and greyhounds; the dogs have been trained for the sights and sounds they can expect to experience in aged care homes.

Australians self-managing their Home Care Packages (HCPs) feel like they receive greater choice, more control, lower costs and more consistency of care than they would from traditional home care packages managed by providers. This is the result of a study, undertaken by Dr Sarah Russell from Research Matters, and commissioned by Mable, an online platform that connects people with home care services. The study looked at the lived experience of 30 Australians self-managing with Mable.

Australia’s largest Not For Profit health and aged care services provider, Catholic Health Australia, has launched a new campaign to push for better aged care ahead of the May 21 Federal Election. CHA – which has more than 25,000 aged care beds and 60,000 residents across its homes – started the Fight for Better Aged Care campaign to urge election candidates to commit publicly to improving aged care worker pay and training. According to CHA CEO Pat Garcia (pictured), now is the time to make sure your local candidates support making aged care better for all Australians.

HammondCare’s residential aged care home in Darlinghurst has a new $84,000 minibus – which has been named after a beloved former resident who had longed to see it happen. Dubbed “The Rolls Roy”, the $84,000 minibus – which bears the numberplate ROY 1 – was handed over by HammondCare CEO Mike Baird in honour of Roy Allen, the self-appointed former concierge of HammondCare Darlinghurst. “We had this wonderful resident who used to be with us – his name was Roy.

NewDirection Care (NDC) is showing off its “MicroTown” model for aged care at Bellmere, Queensland, saying it offers resident-focused, lifestyle-oriented care. NDC Bellmere features 17 houses in an integrated community with shops, café, cinema, barber, salon, and wellness centre. According to CEO and founder Natasha Chadwick, it represents a radical departure from “institutional buildings filled with dozens of patients”.

The first aged care workers to arrive from the Solomon Islands in years have touched down in Australia, where they will help fill gaps in the Australian workforce. Brought to the Northern Territory under the Federal Government’s Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme, the 12 graduates from the Australia Pacific Training Coalition (APTC)’s campus in Suva, Fiji, have each completed a Certificate III in Individual Support (Ageing, Home and Community).

As the years have passed, how many times have you muttered expletives about the design of some ordinary, everyday item that has no regard for the older user?

Residents and employees at the Regis Playford aged care home in South Australia have been treated to an Indigenous cooking demonstration for NAIDOC Week.

RetireAustralia is aiming to challenge people’s preconceptions of aged care with a new campaign for its Glengara Care home in Tumbi Umbi, on the NSW Central Coast. The “Your Care Factor” campaign contrasts stereotypical images of lonely and isolated older people with pictures of Glengara residents socialising and living independently. RetireAustralia CEO Brett Robinson hopes the “provocative” ads will spur viewers to think about their loved ones’ care. “People often have pre-conceived ideas of what aged care looks like, and many consider it a last resort.

There’s no place like home, Dorothy reminded us in The Wizard of Oz… but what and where do we call home? And is it changing?

A Ukrainian refugee grandmother has turned 90 in Australia after finding a new home at Regis Nedlands in Perth. Tamara Plastovets, who came to Perth in April with her daughter Olena, joined her granddaughters and their families following a long journey and was soon placed in Regis Nedlands after a meeting with Nedlands Mayor Fiona Argyle, Ukrainian ambassador to Australia Vasyl Myroshnychenko, and the local Ukrainian association. Olena Yukhymets, Tamara’s granddaughter, said it felt “like a miracle” to have found her grandmother somewhere to live close to her and her sister’s homes.

80-year-old man with dementia lands record deal after ‘Carpool Karaoke’ video finds Internet fame Ted McDermott – known as Teddy Mac, the Songaminute Man – instantly became a worldwide viral hit after videos posted by his son Simon of the pair singing got nearly 40 million views. Now the former Butlin’s redcoat and holiday camp entertainer has released a cover of the Frank

Launceston teacher Joan Webb completed her PhD at the University of Tasmania using her experience of teaching creative writing classes to aged care residents. She had begun her Master’s in her late 80’s and finished it in two years, but was only inspired to go onto her doctorate after she began teaching weekly writing classes to residents at two aged care homes (nursing homes). Searching out older students “There are people in high care who have lost a massive amount of their physical capacity, and still have the most amazing ideas and creativity within them,” she told the ABC.

Activus Transport is a not for profit organisation based in Sutherland Shire in Sydney. We have a proud tradition of providing transport to those people in the community who require additional assistance with their transport needs. The organisation was founded in 1988 with donations from a local Rotary club and the service has now grown to a fleet of 21 vehicles including wheelchair specific vehicles, buses with hoists and additional features such as lower steps and grab rails.

Kay Shaylor, a 62-year-old aged care nurse from Umina Beach on the NSW Central Coast, devoted her life to helping others, but it failed to prevent two lowlifes robbing her as she was trapped in the wreckage of her car at North Gosford. Ms Shaylor had been heading to her job at the Chamberlain Gardens nursing home at Wyoming on September 3 when she was hit head-on with another car. She later died in hospital from her injuries.

Cohousing, multi-generational homes and high rise apartments – there are some interesting trends emerging in the way ordinary Australians are choosing to live.

That’s how big four houses being built next to Gosford Hospital on the NSW Central Coast will be after the local Council gave the green light to the project by the Tiny Homes Foundation (THF), which is designed to create more affordable housing for the homeless. Measuring just 14sqm each, the houses will be constructed for $30,000 and include a kitchen, bathroom, bed, lounge and verandah plus a shared lounge, laundry/workshop and community vegetable gardens. The prefabricated units are also simple to assemble with a proposal to let students in work programs build the units.

How should you communicate with a person who has dementia? A diagnosis of dementia is almost always a life changing shock – not just for the person who has been diagnosed but for family, friends and colleagues.

Delivering clinical care excellence is at the heart of high quality aged care. Embedding quality clinical governance is vital for the sustainability and growth of aged care organisations. It requires a mindset of innovation and improvement, creating a coherent framework and of fostering a proactive atmosphere where new ideas can be embraced. Accurate and timely documentation is a critical aspect of quality clinical care. It is well known that paper documentation of a client’s clinical history can be error-prone and very costly.

Do you feel lonely? The answers is likely to be yes, a new survey says The survey by charity Lifeline found most people felt lonely – and they didn’t want to talk about it. The national survey, which was released last week and received responses from 3,100 people, found about 60 per cent of participants “often felt lonely” while over 80 per cent felt that loneliness was

Did you know six men take their own lives in our country a day? That’s 2,200 every year. A new three-part documentary series is shining a light on this sobering statistic with the goal of getting men to open up and talk about their feelings – and be able to ask for help when they need it. Screening on the ABC, ‘Man Up’ is hosted by radio personality Gus Worland, who has his own personal story to share with viewers. Nine years ago, his best friend took his own life at the age of 53. “He was a hero to me. This awesome, untouchable, always positive guy.

New Zealand has come out second overall in the latest PwC Golden Age Index which looked at how 34 OECD countries were making the most of employees 55 and over, jumping from 9th in 2003. Australia is sitting at 15th. So how did the Kiwis get this result ? Incentives for older workers The report showed nearly 40 percent of New Zealanders were working until they are 70, compared to our full-time rate of 7% for people over 65. It concluded NZ’s good record for allowing older workers flexible working arrangements and a relatively low gender pay gap were the reason behind the jump.

One in three pensioners are living in extreme poverty – could you end up being one of them? Imagine being forced to live with no hot water, missing meals to pay for medication or mashing your food to eat because you can’t afford to go to the dentist. It’s the reality for many of us living on the Age Pension, according to a new study by Per Capita, The Benevolent Society and The Longevity Hub.

At PresCare we’re about you and the people you love. We connect people with the services they need to live the way they choose. Whether it’s organising some help with housework, or assistance with transport to appointments or even choosing a residential community, you’ll find PresCare people listen carefully and work hard to tailor a combination of services that suit the unique needs, tastes and personalities of those we support. PresCare is a Ministry of the Presbyterian Church of Queensland and we’ve been helping Queenslanders live the way they choose since 1929.

St. Vincent’s Health Australia and CatholicCare have teamed up for a project that will allow up to 120 Syrian and Iraqi refugees to be temporarily housed at St Vincent’s Care Services’ Eltham village and aged care homes (nursing homes) in northeast Melbourne. The plan, which was approved by the State Government’s Planning Minister Richard Wynne last week, will see the refugees move into rented accommodation in sixty vacant units at the site for between six months to two years.

That’s the question asked in this wonderful video from Uniting, the services and advocacy arm of the Uniting Church NSW & ACT. It does come with a ‘tearjerker’ warning though. One of a series created by the group, each talk is designed to encourage “courageous action” by Uniting staff. In this clip, Hugh, who works for Newpin, a program helping reunite fathers with their children who have been taken into foster care, meets with Marianne, a doctor working in an injecting centre. The video goes for six minutes, but is worth every second. You can watch it here. Check it out HERE.

With more than one million Australians receiving in-home aged care, a lack of access to effective mental health treatments that meet their needs is a growing concern.

Dementia Australia’s biggest national fundraising event Memory Walk & Jog has raised more than $1 million with the target of $1.7 million in sight.

Whether it’s in Residential Aged Care homes or out in the community, nurses do an incredible job. Friday May 13 marks International Nurses Day.

Tens of thousands of people, of all ages, such as 90-year-old Lily Burns and 20-year-old Charlise Hannagan, volunteer in aged care homes.

One in three people who notice symptoms of dementia in themselves or a loved one keep their fears to themselves for a month or longer, an Alzheimer's Society survey in the UK found.

If you want to be directly involved in the reform of aged care, the Australian Government wants to hear from you.

Did you know thar you start to lose muscle mass as early as age 35? This loss escalates after 50, reaching up to 8% each year between 50 to 70. This can impact on your strength and your risk of frailty and falls and fractures as you age.

Older people deemed to be at risk of developing dementia who were given hearing aids and counselling had less cognitive decline over a three-year period, a randomised trial has found.

When a family member enters residential aged care, deciding what to do with the former family home is important, from an emotional, lifestyle and financial perspective.

The Department of Health and Aged Care and the Maggie Beer Foundation have jointly launched online modules to instruct cooks and chefs working at aged care homes and improve the food being served to residents. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Minister for Aged Care Anika Wells and TV chef Maggie Beer were at the launch of the Maggie Beer Foundation Aged Care Cook and Chef Support Program at Eldercare’s aged care home in Seaford, 32km from Adelaide, this week.

When loved ones suddenly need to enter residential aged care, families often face some tough decisions. The situation can be even complex when early onset dementia is in the picture. However, as one couple discovered, seeking expert financial advice can result in not only substantial financial savings but also peace of mind.

Led by its President Rosemary Bain, the RM Begg Auxiliary Group of 20 dedicated members are drawn together to raise funds and provide support for the aged care home’s residents in the town of Kyneton, 87km northwest of Melbourne.

Guide Park Playspace in the seaside town of Wonthaggi, 132km southeast of Melbourne, which is linked to Rose Lodge Aged Care Home, won the National Landscape Architecture Award for Play Spaces at a ceremony in Adelaide, SA, earlier this month.

Shaz Hobbs, a Care Worker at Akooramak Care of Older Persons facility in Warwick, 139km southwest of Brisbane, loves her job.

One of the questions we often hear at AgedCare101 is: “Can I gift some money to my children or grandchildren without impacting on my Pension or aged care costs?” If a person wants to “gift” assets to family or friends, it could potentially affect your pension and/or aged care costs so it is important to understand the implications of any gifting.

It is very rare for an ageing parent to put their hand up and ask for help. The likely reality is that the decision to move mum or dad into an aged care home generally comes after a sudden event that forces the family into action. Often this causes considerable stress for both the older person and the family as they try to navigate the system.

Regis, which is one of the largest aged care operators in Australia, has launched a new initiative to host a major event every quarter, inviting residents from all its Western Australian homes to join in.

New research by Colonial First State has discovered that most people approaching retirement age have no idea if they are entitled to the Age Pension.

What will aged care look like in 2040? Demographer Simon Kuestenmacher, co-founder of The Demographics Group, has some predictions.

Enrolling in classes and courses, whether in person or online, can help retirees stay socially connected, learn new skills, and maintain good health.

Some older Australians receiving the Age Pension can expect a boost in their payments as significant increases in Centrelink eligibility thresholds come into effect in the new financial year.

Aged care truths: Apply for care as soon as you first think you or a loved one may need it

Moving into residential aged care can be a challenging and emotional decision for the person moving as well as their family, friends and carers.

At 99 years of age, Norma Clark has lived a wonderful life filled with love, happiness and family.

Christmas is a special time for many of us – but it’s also when we may notice that our older family members are not coping as well as they could living at home.

Carolina has been visiting Gisa every Tuesday for months now through the Department of Health and Aged Care's Aged Care Volunteer Visitors Scheme (ACVVS).

When Victor Daoud moved into residential aged care on his own, he thought like many around his age, this marked the end of his life.

Dominique O’Leary, Chief Operations Officer at CareerHub, shares her experience as a carer for her father, Noel, who was diagnosed with vascular dementia in 2020.

If you've ever tried to place a loved one in residential care, you know how confusing and overwhelming the process can be. The Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety found that navigating the aged care assessment process was often a challenge for families, with many being shuffled between different organisations.