Carer Respite and Support
We are here to care for carers. A carer is someone who provides substantial care and support to a friend or relative who is young or frail aged; has a mental illness, a disability, or a chronic illness. A carer can also be a friend or neighbor who assists and supports someone who is frail aged, lives alone, cares for them self independently but also needs assistance…
Carers often say the experience of caring is rewarding in many ways. However, caring for a relative or friend can also be very stressful and even more exhausting. Our Commonwealth Carer Respite Centre’s aim to ensure we give Carers the information, support and assistance they need.
Carers play a vital role in the community. Family and friends often take the responsibility of caring for people at home. However, this requires a lot of time and commitment from carers who may, in turn, need some assistance themselves. The Australian Government values and recognises Carers and the valuable role they perform and this is why services such as ours are available for Carers and those they care for.
Carer Respite Information and Support covers:
- Respite services, including residential respite, in-home respite, cottage respite and day programs.
- A range of health and community services available in your area and agencies specialising in particular health conditions.
- Your rights and entitlements as a Carer.
- Local self-help and Carer support groups.
- Visit you in your home or meet at a place convenient to you.
- Provide an opportunity to talk confidentially about a range of issues.
- Assistance with planning of innovative care options to meet individual needs.
- Provide emotional support centred on your needs as a Carer.
- Identify and support opportunities for enhancing your personal wellbeing.
- Introduce you to a range of support services tailored to your needs and those of the person for whom you care
- Assist you to develop strategies to manage your caring situation.
- Arrange short term in home respite to give you a break.
- Arrange immediate in home respite to assist you in an emergency.
- Work with you to advocate that your needs be met.
- Resource and support local carer support groups.
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For further information and support please contact us on 1800 059 059.
To find out how we can help please call your nearest Commonwealth Respite & Carelink Centre or during After Hours our Direct Respite Services centre on 1800 059 059 and talk to our friendly, professional staffs.
The importance of community care
For a person needing a service to assist them to care for someone at home, or for someone to remain independently in their own home community care can be considered the cornerstone of the care system.
For example, community services assist people by being able to provide them with the opportunity and the choice for an older person with dementia to stay at home longer and it is becoming increasingly clear that that is the wish of the majority of those cared for. Well designed and managed community care services build on the capacities of people to remain independent while in contrast institutional care can reduce independence
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For people with dementia especially, the importance of continuing to live in familiar surroundings for as long as possible cannot be stressed enough especially when the person is no longer able to follow familiar routines in familiar surroundings. Community care in the home is the preferred option for the majority of frail aged persons and people with dementia needing care.
However, it is not always possible for people to remain at home without support and in particular, community care. That is why the services needed are many and varied and the programs and funding sources are so diverse in target groups, age groups and service types. It is therefore important to recognise each community service in their individual capacity of being valuable through their abilities to respond to the needs of each individual or their carer, family or friend that requires a particular service to assist them to remain independent, supported and at home.
For many of our programs services your eligibility can be assessed over the phone, you don’t always need an Aged Care Assessment, especially in an emergency, and we may also be able to refer you to other important services.
To find out how we can help please call your nearest Commonwealth Respite & Carelink Centre or during After Hours our Direct Respite Services centre on 1800 059 059 and talk to our friendly, professional staffs
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