Aged Care Near Me: How to find suitable aged care

Looking for suitable Aged Care Near Me, but you’re unsure how to start?

It can all seem a bit overwhelming at first and it is hard to know where to begin. That is where Aged Care Decisions comes into the picture.

At Aged Care Decisions, we assist thousands of families a month across Australia to navigate the aged care journey. Care can be complicated, but our job is to make the process of placing a loved one into aged care less stressful and more streamlined.

Ready to find aged care now?

Aged Care Decisions is a support service that is completely independent and free of charge. If you are ready to find a nursing home or home care now, we can match you with care options that suit your location, care needs, preferences and budget.

To get started, simply complete this quick and easy form.

For those just starting the process, below you will find some useful information to assist you with your care journey.

Where do I start searching for aged care?

If you are the type of person who prefers to do their research and ask around before making a commitment, then word-of-mouth and online reviews are a great place to start. Australia’s largest Aged Care review website can be found at agedcarereviews.com.au

Finding care without support can be hard

The task of finding care may be harder than you realise, especially when you’re trying to do it all on your own.

 Just like job or house hunting, searching for care can be time consuming and stressful. You must wade through a lot of information to find the perfect match. When you find the job or house you like, you then need to compete with others to hopefully end up with the one you wanted. It can be similar with finding a nursing home or home care. For instance, there are no guarantees the care facility of your choosing will have a bed vacancy for your loved one’s care type.

To find aged care, it is important you take the following things into consideration:

• Make sure you have the right support around.
• Have your paperwork sorted out and ready for all the different government assistance, financial assistance and residential aged care assessment forms you need to complete.
• Make a list of all the care providers in your desired location.
• Look for vacancies and availability at those aged care homes. This usually requires calling around and undergoing admission assessments to see if your loved one suits their admission requirements.
• Check if the facility is set up with the right resources and experience necessary to look after your loved one’s health and care needs.
• Do some research on the care facility to find out more information about what they offer.
• Collate any reviews/feedback.
• Contact all the facilities you would like to tour and make bookings.
• Look into booking respite to trial the room.
• Make sure all the timing works out in terms of moving from one home to another.

There is no doubt that there is a huge amount of work to do that involves a great deal of time and effort to find the right care. Navigating the process is probably the hardest part so it can help to have professional support to guide you. Aged Care Decisions can assist you with most of the items mentioned above including vacancy information and coordinating tours.

To take this first step in your care journey, please give us a call on 1300 775 870 or fill out this form and we will get in touch with you.

From personal experiences, we discovered how complex the process of finding nursing homes and home care can be and wanted to create a service that alleviates some of the stress. We have a comprehensive understanding of how to navigate the care system and genuinely want to provide support to families in need during this difficult time. In other words, no need to worry – we can help!

You do not have to do this by yourself. This is the main reason we started Aged Care Decisions – so we could assist people in finding aged care for their loved one without having to navigate it alone.

Using our expertise, we have tried to make the process as simple as possible for you. Here is a quick introduction to our seven-step placement guide to help you find nursing homes and home care.

1. Get an Aged Care Assessment
2. Complete an Assets and Income Assessment
3. Understand the fees and charges
4. Think about the option of respite
5. Shortlist your care options
6. Book tours at your shortlisted facilities
7. Apply and enter care

To learn more about the care placement process in greater detail, please do not hesitate to get in touch with our team on 1300 775 870 or fill out this form and we will get in touch with you.

Can I just get a list of nursing homes or home care providers?

We would love to provide you with a simple list of providers in your local area but unfortunately this might not be entirely helpful as the system is much more complex. What we provide will be more in-depth and cater specifically to your situation and needs. We prefer to give a customised options report to ensure you find your match with ease.

The customised list of nursing homes and home care options our expert team provides you with is compiled only after we have an in-depth discussion with you about your requirements, desired location, budget, health care needs and any additional preferences or interests of your loved one. We then match this to our national database of facility vacancies, RAD prices and the care they offer.

Details about your customised options report

Even though a facility may have vacancies, care providers also need to ensure they can support the specific care level needed for the potential resident. As such, care facilities need to undertake an assessment of potential residents before making an offer of placement. Doing otherwise risks a mismatch between what care level is offered in a facility (or wing), and the care needs of a potential resident. This again is where Aged Care Decisions can provide additional support.

The best way to start the process of narrowing down aged care facility options is with an open discussion with an Aged Care Decisions Placement Specialist. They can help highlight your preferences and build a customised shortlist for you.

How do we build your customised shortlist of aged care options?

Aged Care Decisions will assess the potential resident’s needs and preferred location against a database of facilities that have registered with us. This equates to over 70% of Aged Care Providers in metropolitan areas of Australia.

By utilising our national database of partner facilities, a dedicated specialist at Aged Care Decisions can assist you to identify suitable vacancy options. The result is a customised options report that will be emailed to you by your Aged Care Decisions’ placement specialist. At the same time, we send the case information to the facilities on your shortlist and invite them to start the process of assessing the potential resident for admission.

Narrowing down on a preferred option

During discussions with your Aged Care Decisions Placement Specialist, they will begin to understand which option/s from the initial customised list are your preferred choices. Aged Care Decisions will then advocate on the potential aged care resident’s behalf to assist with a speedy admissions process. This will include ensuring that the potential care resident and their family are invited for a tour and provided with any outstanding paperwork that needs to be completed.

How do I make the right choice about aged care?

As part of the assistance that someone from our Aged Care Decisions team provides you with, you will be given an options report with links to your chosen care facilities. From this list you can investigate the provider in more detail and choose the ones you wish to book a tour at.

The list of options you receive from us is based on your personal needs and preferences. However, the final choice is completely up to you and your family. Finding the right care home is an extremely important and personal choice. We are here to support you every step of the way.

You make the final choice

We will help you narrow down your choices based on your criteria, but we never recommend any specific aged care provider to you. Aged Care Decisions is a completely independent service. We simply aim to match you and your family with care options and to empower you to make the right choice.

At the end of the day, like any other big decisions in life, you will be able to select the one that feels right for your family. Some people prefer to choose a place based on lifestyle and activities available, whereas others look for the one with the most modern facilities.

There will be many similarities between the rooms and homes. The final choice will most likely come down to location, availability and level of health requirements and support available at the time you or your loved one are requiring care.

We help you arrange tours or short stays

Your Aged Care Decisions Placement Specialist will advocate for you with your shortlist of providers. This includes ensuring that you are invited for a tour. When you tour a care home or have a stay in respite, you will get more of a feel for the place. 

Some things to consider when you are touring and deciding on the care facility:

• Staff tenure and culture
• Staff levels
• Use of agency staff
• Activities calendar
• Meals and menu
• Cleanliness and smell
• Building and amenities
• Residents feedback

A Tour Checklist can be found in the Aged Care Placement Guide. Please request one from our team. 

Aged Care Decisions supports thousands of families a month with a free and independent service – empowering families with information, advice and options at all stages in the care placement journey. Our trained Placement Specialists are experts at assisting families find aged care and help alleviate some of the stress involved. If you need help to find care, do not hesitate to give us a call on 1300 775 870 or fill out this form and we will get in touch with you.