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Recent illness, disability, bereavement
or simply the passing of the years may make it necessary for a member
of your family to enter a nursing home. For this to occur you will need
to be assessed and choose a nursing home.
Assessment
It is best to talk to your own doctor first to see if you need to be referred to an Aged Care Assessment Teams (ACATs). The ACAT is usually based at a hospital or community centre and may include a doctor, nurse, social worker, physiotherapist or occupational therapist. Once you have made an appointment, a member of your local ACAT team will visit you in your home or in hospital to make an assessment of your needs.
When the ACAT member has assessed your needs, she or he will leave you with a copy of a completed assessment, which will tell you whether you are eligible for residential aged care. If you are assessed as eligible, keep this copy of the form as it is the approval for your move to residential aged care. The ACAT will talk with you about what other services you may need, and arrange referrals to residential care providers.
Finding a Nursing Home
When you receive an approval from an ACAT to enter residential aged care, either permanently or on a respite basis, you may wish to begin the process of finding an aged care home. See the section on What to look for when selecting a Nursing Home.
Fees
When you look for your home, it's important to understand what type of home you're considering
Moving and settling in
Living in an aged care home will be different from the way that you have lived before. Not only is it a new environment but you are living with many new people all under one roof. Each aged care home will have different routines and environments. When you know which home you're going to live in, you may arrange to visit before you move in, to familiarise yourself with the home's surroundings.
Assessment
It is best to talk to your own doctor first to see if you need to be referred to an Aged Care Assessment Teams (ACATs). The ACAT is usually based at a hospital or community centre and may include a doctor, nurse, social worker, physiotherapist or occupational therapist. Once you have made an appointment, a member of your local ACAT team will visit you in your home or in hospital to make an assessment of your needs.
When the ACAT member has assessed your needs, she or he will leave you with a copy of a completed assessment, which will tell you whether you are eligible for residential aged care. If you are assessed as eligible, keep this copy of the form as it is the approval for your move to residential aged care. The ACAT will talk with you about what other services you may need, and arrange referrals to residential care providers.
Finding a Nursing Home
When you receive an approval from an ACAT to enter residential aged care, either permanently or on a respite basis, you may wish to begin the process of finding an aged care home. See the section on What to look for when selecting a Nursing Home.
Fees
When you look for your home, it's important to understand what type of home you're considering
- Most residents will pay a combination of fees and charges. Fees are calculated and regulated by the government.
- The fees and charges you may have to pay are:
- A basic daily care fee
- A daily income tested fee (based on an income assessment by Centrelink or the Department of Veterans' Affairs) and
- An accommodation payment (you only pay these if your assets exceed an amount set by the government
Moving and settling in
Living in an aged care home will be different from the way that you have lived before. Not only is it a new environment but you are living with many new people all under one roof. Each aged care home will have different routines and environments. When you know which home you're going to live in, you may arrange to visit before you move in, to familiarise yourself with the home's surroundings.