Article posted:Feb 8, 2011
Category: Home and Community Care
What is Home Care?
Home Care can help elderly people by providing part-time services such as housework, meal preparation, health care et cetera. Therefore if you or someone you know needs help with these tasks but is not ready to move into residential aged care, then Home Care may be something to consider.
To determine what extent of Home Care is needed, the individual needs to be assessed by an Aged Care Assessment Team (ACAT) which should be free. The individual will then be placed into one of two categories which are government programs. Those categories are CACP (Community Aged Care Packages) and EACH (Extended Aged Care at Home). If the individual is assessed into the CACP category, Home Care could provide the following services at the home of the person:
CACP services:
- gardening and/or social activities
- medication
- dressing
- cleaning and laundry
- food preparation
- personal hygiene
- transport
EACH services:
- Assistance with oxygen and/or enteral feeding
- Allied health care
- Social support
- Registered nurse care
- Transport to appointments
- Personal care
Please not that if the person is placed into the EACH category, this means they require a higher level of care than CACP packages. If the individual has been placed in this category and is considering moving into a nursing home at a later date, then it would be likely that that person would require a high level of care at that facility.
Home Care in Sydney
Home Care can be found in all Sydney regions. You can search for Home Care Sydney. CACP and EACH packages are available.
Useful Links
- Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing
- Search for Home Care Sydney and Home Care New South Wales
More Information
Government Programs
The CACP and EACH packages are regulated and partially funded by the Government.
If you are placed into a CACP or EACH package then a fee of no more than 17.5% of the individual’s income will be charged, if the individual is on the maximum basic pension rate. For those who earn a higher income, they may be asked to pay additional fees but that cannot exceed more than 50% of their income.
Private Providers and Not-for-Profit Organisations
Not-for-profit organisations may also provide Home Care and therefore with a charitable reduction.
There are also private providers which are sometimes in conjunction with government programs, however commercial rates do apply.
Where can I get an ACAT (Aged Care Assessment Team) assessment?
ACATs can be searched for at the Australian Government’s Department for Health and Ageing.
What are the costs? Government versus Private Providers
The ACAT/ACAS assessments are free of charge.
You can search by state and suburb or post code.
