COVER STORY
Living at home forever – and loving it! There are plenty of good reasons to remain living at home, simple economics among them. JULIE LAKE investigates the possibilities, the options and even the new technology.
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t costs a lot of money to keep somebody in a nursing home – accommodation payments of $250,000-$550,000 are not uncommon and some are higher. Lower-priced nursing homes are available but demand is high and amenities may not appeal to Baby
Boomers used to a certain standard of living. Much of the cost is borne by the federal government unless your retirement income has reasonable wage parity, which is why the government prefers to help its elderly, chronically ill or physically-challenged citizens to live
in their own homes forever. This is made possible by a range of aids and services under the My Aged Care banner; the former available from government health care outlets or specialist suppliers and the latter from one of the many health care providers. The big question is, how do you go about accessing them? The answer is, it’s complicated! So whether you require help for yourself, your partner or your parents, today or in the future, the time to start looking into it is NOW. The first step is simple. If you think you or someone close to you may be eligible for care, talk to your GP about being assessed by an aged care assessment team (ACAT) of health care professionals. Or you can self-refer. This can take some weeks to set up unless your case is urgent. Everything hangs on this interview so it’s important to be brutally honest about your problems so that you can be assessed for the right level of care. Don’t hang tough, or you’ll get less than you need. Don’t exaggerate because these trained experts will see through it. Make a list of all your problems and needs first. And here’s a couple more useful tips: make it clear you wish to stay at home, not go into a nursing home. And don’t apply for ACAT too early – if you don’t use it for a year you’ll have to reapply. The assessment will determine the level of care you need, from a few hours a week to a total care package. Details of the four levels of care package are available on the website
agedcareguide.com.au and other sources. This includes costs and what each person pays depends on a means test. Basically, the richer you are the more you pay. So far, so good. But now you have to select a care provider and there is a bewildering number of these – about 14 of them in Brisbane and the north and south coasts, ranging from church-based to private and community-based. The ACAT team will put you in touch with some organisations in your area but the final choice, thanks to the Consumer Directed Care (CDP) program, is up to you. Geoff Marshall, manager of a community care organisation that provides various support services to seniors describes the process of finding the most suitable service provider as having become “de-personalised, invasive and frustrating to potential consumers” since the system changed in 2015. However, when it comes to making a choice he suggests considering more than one provider because while it is generally simpler to have a single provider, services differ from one care organisation to another and you can pick and choose those that suit your particular needs. Fees differ too because there is no government-fixed price for service. If you live in Brisbane or urban parts of the Sunshine and Gold Coasts you have a lot of choice; in rural areas that choice will be limited. Jock Pugh is 83 and has several chronic health conditions though he is still able to move around his home with the aid of a stick and walk short distances. His slightly younger wife, Bet, is in good health.
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21/02/2019 10:34:19 AM