Aged care is an umbrella term for the services offered to older Australians. This can be help in an individual’s home, or offering an alternative place of care if independent living at home is no longer possible.
Other terms you might hear and what they mean
There are a lot of different terms you’ll come across and it can get confusing. Let’s go through some of the most common ones.
Home care
Home care is another umbrella term. It may also be referred to as home support. This one refers to the services that help the ageing population keep living at home. It can be help with everyday tasks like dressing and bathing, or clinical tasks such as medication and allied health and therapy services.
You might also hear about Home Care Packages. This refers to Commonwealth funded home care and is a money-based support to help you/your loved one receive more complex support from home care services.
Arcare’s parent company The Knowles Group also has a retirement arm, Sencia, and a home care and NDIS business BodeWell Community Care.
Residential care
Residential care refers to services offered for those who can no longer live in their own home. 24/7 personal care is offered with options for respite (4 weeks stay) or permanent. An aged care facility, such as Arcare, offers residential care.
Respite care
Respite care refers to short term stays in an aged care facility. Most aged care facilities offer this service and provide the same care they offer their permanent residents. Respite care is an opportunity to experience a new community and to give carers much needed time to recharge.
Arcare offers respite care at all our residences, though availability may vary.
Nursing homes
Nursing homes are now referred to as aged care facilities. The term is a holdover from a time when residential care was split into two levels. Nursing homes were for older people that needed a higher level of care that had to be provided by nurses. This separation no longer exists – most aged care facilities will have nurses as well as carers.
Keep an eye out: next month’s blog post will have more information about the difference between nurses and carers.
Homes, residences, sites, facilities – which is which?
These terms come down to organisational choice. There often isn’t any difference between the services and care offered by any one of these options. They come back to the history of aged care and the old names used in aged care. They can be used interchangeably and a lot of the time their use is chosen by personal or organisational preference.
Arcare generally uses the term residence, though you may also hear ‘site’.
Where do retirement villages fit into this?
Retirement villages can be considered the stepping stone between home care and residential care. Retirees can live in independent accommodation while also being a part of a community. People in retirement villages have their own homes and have access to communal spaces like dining areas and living spaces.
Arcare’s parent company, Knowles Group, also runs a retirement village organization called Sencia.
Some people move from their own homes into retirement villages and then into residential care, others skip both home care and retirement villages and move into residential care. There is no right way to use aged care services and no right path to take. Understanding the language of your options can help you choose the aged care services best suited to help you.
