Much of the budget analysis over the past week has concentrated on the shuffling of expenditure for 2012-13 back to this financial year in order to achieve a surplus. It’s true that $17.6bn of such transfers…
More than 600 young Australians with disabilities currently live in nursing homes.
Michelle Newland was 19 years old when she had a severe asthma attack that left her with hypoxic brain injury. After eight weeks, the hospital staff told Michelle’s parents that she was not suitable for…
A fairer and more sustainable system is being proposed.
flickr/louisa_catlover
The Government’s aged care reforms are a landmark for setting valuable directions for better care. It’s the first such major initiative in more than 25 years – but there’s a long and uncertain road ahead…
Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Minister for Aged Care Mark Butler today unveiled a $3.7 bn aged care package.
AAP
The Commonwealth government today announced a $3.7 bn package of reforms to give older Australians “more choice, easier access and better care” in their later years. The Living Longer Living Better plan…
We need to rethink our aged care workforce and funding for dementia patients.
Alex E Proimos
Last week, Alzheimer’s Australia released a report that was highly critical of the way Australia’s aged care sector responds to the needs of dementia suffers and their families. It’s an issue that demands…
A quiet but significant conversation about caring started across all levels of government and parts of the non-government sector this year. It emanates from two key reports from the Productivity Commission…
Ageism is pervasive on our television screens.
TheBmag
Most of us have no direct experience of psychiatry or severe mental illness. So our attitudes and experiences are shaped by what we are exposed to: mass media portrayals. Reality rarely makes good drama…
Chemicals are present in the brain a decade or so before symptoms occur.
Rosie O Beirne
Dementia is among the largest cause of disability in Australians aged over 65 and affects memory, intellect, rationality, social skills and everyday activities. Alzheimer’s disease, which accounts for…
Older people are finally being consulted about the type of care they need.
EPA/Diego Azubel
Australia’s population is ageing, presenting an economic challenge to look after the most vulnerable members of our society. The Productivity Commission released a report last month recommending a complete…
Every year outbreaks of influenza in aged-care facilities create major disruption.
Alyssa L. Miller
Flu outbreaks in nursing homes can lead to pneumonia, stroke and heart attacks among elderly residents. Staff are a major potential source of infection, but only around one in five get an annual flu shot…
Welcome to If I had a blank cheque … a series in which leading researchers reveal what they could (and would) do in their discipline if money were no object. Today we hear from Dr Kate Cornick, Executive…
The Gillard government can expect resistance to implementing the report’s recommendations.
AAP
What is the most remarkable aspect of this report? The Productivity Commission is proposing an important set of reforms with its Caring for Older Australians Report. These reforms chart a way to cut through…
Honorary Enterprise Professor, School of Population and Global Health, and Department of General Practice and Primary Care, The University of Melbourne