During the pandemic, carers reported their loved ones with dementia became more disoriented, restless and withdrawn. And carers themselves experienced poorer mental health.
Richard Colbeck had to face the music this week over attending the fifth test in his home state of Tasmania when he’d told the Senate COVID committee he was too busy working on the Omicron wave spreading through aged care.
We measured financial literacy among 589 informal carers that substantially helped an older person make a decision about paying for residential aged care. Less than half were financially literate.
With COVID deaths in aged care mounting and reports of neglect of residents due to workforce shortages, Scott Morrison on Monday announced bonus payments totalling up to $800 for staff.
Despite improvements, the aged care sector is currently under extreme pressure. The serious effects of isolation and neglect are potentially as severe now and more widespread than in 2020.
Australia needs a new home-care model – one that provides much more personalised support to help older people get the services they need and that manages local service systems for them.
Keeping mentally, physically and socially active helps people with dementia maintain their brain and thinking. But in lockdown, when people with dementia did less, this can lead to a decline.
There are around 50 sexual assaults in Australian aged care homes every week. But staff are expected to assess the severity and impact of incidents without training.
The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership agreement prevents signatories from tightening regulations, except in specified sectors — and aged care hasn’t been named as one of those exceptions.
The federal government has announced COVID-19 vaccination will now become mandatory for aged-care workers. This comes amid a slow and troubled rollout in the sector.
University of Canberra Professorial Fellow Michelle Grattan and University of Canberra Associate Professor Caroline Fisher discuss the week in politics.
Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne