Safeguarding younger people from unnecessarily entering aged care – Summer Foundation submission on the exposure draft of the Bill for the new Aged Care Act

Tags: NDIS, residential aged care (RAC)

Description:

The Summer Foundation is pleased to make a submission on the exposure draft of the Bill for the new Aged Care Act. We welcome the proposed eligibility criteria for entry into the aged care system, which is a necessary measure in closing the door to younger people entering aged care.

However, this is not enough on its own to ensure younger people do not unnecessarily enter residential aged care (RAC). Increased investment into other service sectors is also required to meet the needs of younger people. Younger people in and at risk of RAC must have access to a range of safe housing and living alternatives so they can exercise true choice and control over where they live.

The new Aged Care Act should fill an existing gap and specify that state and territory governments must take all reasonable steps to secure appropriate community based housing and living supports for younger people who are ineligible for funded aged care services.

Closing the door to younger people entering aged care – Summer Foundation position statement on the proposed new Aged Care Act

Tags: aged care, residential aged care (RAC), YPIRAC

Description:

The Federal Government is developing a new Aged Care Act to replace existing legislation. The Summer Foundation welcomes the proposed change that “apart from First Nations persons, or people at risk of homelessness, no other younger persons will be able to access funded aged care services.”
 
A sustainable solution to the issue of young people in residential aged care (YPIRAC) requires completely closing the door to aged care for younger people.
 
These amendments are a vital part of important aged care reforms, as recommended by the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission. Rather than using aged care as the provider of last resort, public money should be put to better use to fix gaps and failures in disability, health and housing service systems and develop alternative pathways that enable people under 65 to live in the community.

Inclusive housing – The Summer Foundation position statement on the Disability Royal Commission’s final report

Tags: aged care, residential aged care (RAC), YPIRAC

Description:

Addressing the level and scope of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation evidenced in the Disability Royal Commission’s final report is a monumental task. It is critical that the people with disability who gave so much to the DRC benefit from some quick wins as well as see tangible actions to address some of the more complex and systemic challenges.
 
The emphasis on inclusive housing and inclusive lives in the final report is welcomed. Social connection and access to the community reduces the risk of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation.
 
Federal, state and territory governments need to partner with people with disability and the sector to build on existing work and evidence, rather than duplicating efforts. To quote the DRC’s final report, real solutions need to reimagine these systems “in partnership with people with disability, with their voices at the centre of reforms.”

Younger people in residential aged care – Progress towards Government targets

Tags: residential aged care (RAC), YPIRAC

Description:

A nursing home is no place for someone under 65 to live. The government’s focus on the issue of younger people in residential aged care (YPIRAC) is welcome, but the problem isn’t solved yet.

According to new data, there are still 3,163 younger people in aged care, and on average they’ve been stuck there for 4.9 years. Another 30 people under 65 enter each month. Two government targets aiming to solve the problem are due in December, but meeting them can’t be taken for granted.

Do young people with neurological conditions in residential aged care use hospitals differently than those in the community? Evidence from Victorian hospital data, 2014–2017

Tags: residential aged care (RAC)

Description:

This study describes the duration and reasons for hospitalisation for three cohorts of younger adults with neurological conditions who either used residential aged care (RAC) or lived in the community. Hospitalisations as a clinical event indicate conditions for which younger people in RAC may need support as they move into community-based housing.

Effective housing and support models for people with Huntington’s disease – Report 1: Interviews with professionals

Tags: housing, residential aged care (RAC)

Description:

People with Huntington’s disease require high levels of specialised care in order for them to manage daily living tasks. Specialised housing for people with Huntington’s disease in Australia is limited. This is in part due to a lack of funding and in part due to a lack of appropriate facilities. For many people, this means that their only option is to live in residential aged care (RAC). Living in RAC is generally not appropriate given that the environment often has a lack of age-appropriate activities, and social interaction.

Citation:

Cubis, L., McDonald, S., Winkler, D., Douglas, J. (2022). Effective housing and support models for people with Huntington’s disease – Report 1: Interviews with professionals. Summer Foundation and La Trobe University.

Effective housing and support models for people with Huntington’s disease – Report 2: Interviews with close others

Tags: housing, residential aged care (RAC)

Description:

People with Huntington’s disease require high levels of specialised care in order for them to manage daily living tasks. Specialised housing for people with Huntington’s disease in Australia is limited. This is in part due to a lack of funding and in part due to a lack of appropriate facilities. For many people, this means that their only option is to live in residential aged care (RAC). Living in RAC is generally not appropriate given that the environment often has a lack of age-appropriate activities, and social interaction.

Citation:

Cubis, L., McDonald, S., Winkler, D., Douglas, J. (2022). Effective housing and support models for people with Huntington’s disease – Report 2: Interviews with close others. Summer Foundation and La Trobe University.

Andrew’s story – What life is like in aged care

Tags: nursing home, residential aged care (RAC)

Description:

Andrew tells us what life is like for him as a young person living in aged care and what the barriers are for him to leave aged care.

Young people in residential aged care: Is Australia on track to meet its targets?

Tags: residential aged care (RAC), YPIRAC

Description:

Governments have long aimed to reduce admissions of young people to residential aged care (RAC), but in 2019, for the first time, the Australian Government adopted target dates for resolving the issue through the Younger People in Residential Aged Care Strategy. The targets include:

• no people under the age of 65 entering residential aged care by 2022
• no people under the age of 45 living in residential aged care by 2022
• no people under the age of 65 living in residential aged care by 2025

This study drew on quarterly data from the National Aged Care Data Clearinghouse to examine progress toward these targets. It finds that significant progress was evident in terms of young people entering RAC, as admissions reduced each quarter between September 2018 and July 2020, halving over two years. However, no progress was evident in terms of young people leaving RAC for better arrangements, as the trend neither increased nor decreased. This paper discusses these trends and also prospects for achieving the Australian Government’s targets.

Citation:

Brown, M., Condi, A., Davis, E., Goodwin, I., Winkler, D., & Douglas, J. (2021). Young people in residential aged care: Is Australia on track to meet its targets? Australian Journal of Social Issues

Young People in Residential Aged Care in Australia, 2019 – 2020

Tags: residential aged care (RAC), YPIRAC

Description:

This report utilises the available administrative data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, and the NDIA to describe the characteristics and geographical distribution of young people in permanent residential aged care (RAC) in Australia in 2019-2020. It finds that as at 30 June 2020, 4,860 people under 65 years, including 130 people under 45 years, were living in permanent RAC. They accounted for 2.6% and 0.1%, respectively, of all residents in permanent RAC. The number of young people under 65 years residing in permanent RAC decreased by 13.3% compared to 12 months prior.

Citation:

Bishop, G.M., Mulherin, P., & Winkler, D. (2021). Young people in residential aged care in Australia, 2019-2020. Summer Foundation.

True stories, Practical Solutions – Submission to the Royal Commission on Aged Care Quality and Safety

Tags: nursing home, residential aged care (RAC), royal commission, submission

Description:

The submission identifies the key policy and systemic changes needed to stop young people being forced into aged care. It covers what needs to change and how it can happen.

Michelle’s housing journey

Tags: independence, nursing home, residential aged care (RAC), Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA)

Description:

At the age of 19, Michelle suffered an asthma attack and spent nearly two years in a nursing home. This is Michelle’s journey to once again living independently.