INTRO
Recently I was approached by Kyra Snell to ask if I'd be interested in
collaborating together to share her story about a difficult experience she
had seeking care support for her grandmother, and how that led her to create
a How To Guide to show others how to tackle the Australian Aged Care system
and the services that are on offer if you know how to dig deeply enough to
find them.
It's not a topic we think of much because most of us aren't quite ready yet
to access help for ourselves, but we are often plunged into it unexpectedly
when a mother, father, mother-in-law, or other family member's health starts
to fail.
I've learned a lot from this collaboration, and the free guide she shares
at the end of the post is something I'm saving for when it's my turn to
navigate the system. I hope you find her story as interesting as I did. Now
let me hand you over to Kyra....
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
The Aged Care landscape in Australia can be overwhelming and incredibly confusing. It’s not something you really learn about until you have to. Often you’re trying to make decisions in a time of crisis and if you make a wrong decision or miss a step, the consequences can be heartbreaking. I have experienced this first-hand and I wanted to do something to make sure that others didn’t have to go through what my family and I did. That’s how CareAbout was born.I founded CareAbout to make the process of finding home care and support as easy and as stress-free as possible. Aged Care in Australia can be messy, confusing, and upsetting, but CareAbout provides a solution to this. It was started so that no other family feels as lost as we did.
IT STARTED WITH ELLA
The story of CareAbout really starts with Ella – my grandmother. Ella was fiercely independent, one of the first women to go through RMIT business school, a practitioner of yoga for over 40 years and financially independent. She loved nature, good food and had a large and active friendship group. When she developed dementia, it went undetected, and we simply didn’t know how to access the right support for her. Even with a nurse, a social worker, a teacher, and a policy-writer in the family we couldn’t decipher the government jargon, find the access points for care at home or understand the nursing home contracts. The successive move from her home to a retirement village, to aged care to low-care aged care and then to a locked-down dementia ward made her symptoms worse.Tragically, our experience was not uncommon. There simply wasn’t clear, easily understood information and advice you could access. Ella’s experience could have been different.
And so, I started CareAbout in 2017 to guide families through the system – from the very beginning through to the very end. I was determined to ensure they had access to information in plain English; to ensure the process of finding care and support is straightforward and that families can be matched with quality Home Care providers who can meet their needs, goals and preferences.
I wanted to make sure that families didn’t have the same exhausting and heartbreaking experience that my family and I had.
HOW DOES CAREABOUT HELP?
Our fundamental belief is that quality care is a basic human right. We’ve waded through the government and industry jargon to provide those looking for a Home Care provider with clear and accurate information, so that they’re able to make the right decision for themselves or a loved one.CareAbout is a destination for comparing quality Home Care services. We provide free, simple advice on how to navigate Home Care in Australia, and when customers are ready, we match their needs to one of our quality hand-picked providers.
When it comes to Home Care, we’re quite picky, and don’t just partner with anyone! We have a range of providers to suit a variety of preferences, but if we can’t find a match that we think is excellent, we’ll let you know and you can use the information and tools we gave you at no cost.
OUR #1 RECOMMENDATION IS TO GET A HOME CARE PACKAGE
There are a few different Aged Care options but for those looking to age at home, Home Care support is a fantastic option.A Home Care Package is a pool of funding allocated by the government to assist with care and support at home. The amount of funding is very generous (up to $53,000 per year) and certainly worth taking up.
Once a Home Care Package has been allocated, you can then choose a provider and select which services you want to receive from your chosen provider. There are a great number of services, from personal care through to gardening and social and recreational activities and you get to choose what suits you!
HOW TO APPLY FOR HOME CARE PACKAGE FUNDING
With so much information out there, it’s hard to know where to start. We have a free comprehensive Guide to Home Care which gives you everything you need to know about applying for a Home Care Package and getting access to those government funds.DOWNLOAD OUR FREE HOME CARE GUIDE TO GET STARTED
What you’ll learn:
● How a Home Care Package can allow one to stay at home for as long as possible
● Which government subsidies are available
● Answers the common questions 100s of people ask CareAbout each month
● How to compare providers and fees
● Common pitfalls people encounter when comparing home care in words you can understand!
WHAT ABOUT YOU?
Have you had to face the hurdles of navigating your way through the
Aged Care system yet? I hope you find Kyra's guide helpful - I think
anything that we can have in our arsenal when the time comes is
definitely a bonus. Knowing what you're entitled to, and how to get help
when you need it - especially for someone you love - is vital isn't
it?
Meet Kyra
Kyra created her business after discovering the difficulties of navigating the Aged Care networks available to her ailing grandmother. She now offers guidance, support, and resources to others who are trying to find help for their family members as they age.
JUST A FINAL NOTE:
I've turned off the comments on my blog posts, but still love to hear
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