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Care Opinion

Designated Respite at Aged Care Facilities

Posted By limaed47

"Designated Respite at Aged Care Facilities"

About: Uniting NSW & ACT

(as a service user),

In March 2020, when the Covid Lockdown hit, I took my parent out of a wonderful Uniting Aged Care Residential facility to live with my partner and me.

We had no idea how long my parent would stay with us. But here we are, one year later.

My partner and I want to continue caring for my parent at home. But it is challenging and exhausting at times and we need a holiday to recharge our spirits, energy, and relationship!

My parent is an elderly person and has dementia. They are vulnerable and require high care.

In addition to caring for my parent, my partner and I run businesses.

We want to have a 3 week holiday later this year to travel outback, but we cannot find a Uniting Aged Care facility that we can book my parent into for respite care for 3 weeks.

I was told that my best chance of getting my parent respite care for 3 weeks is to call places around 2 weeks before we plan to leave and try and find availability for them.

So we feel can’t plan or have a holiday.

I feel it would be fantastic if “designated” respite care was available in Uniting Aged Care Facilities. 

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Responses

Response from Saviour Buhagiar, UnitingCare Australia 3 years ago
Saviour Buhagiar
UnitingCare Australia

Submitted on 16/04/2021 at 11:58 AM
Published on Care Opinion at 11:58 AM

Dear limaed47,

Thank you for your suggestion regarding setting a bed aside in residential services. We do this in some of our services. However, in homes where demand for permanent admissions is high, we prioritise permanent offerings.

This said, given our commitment to supporting carers’, at Uniting we offer several respite care options that enable families to continue to provide the critical support they deliver to their loved ones every day. These include 2 homely respite cottages in Sydney and Orange which are designed for pre-planned respite provision. They can accommodate longer days or overnight visits for a few days or weeks. We are more than happy to take you or anyone in a similar position through an introduction of how our cottage-based respite services work so you may be able to consider this option, if it meets your needs. A Uniting team member can also talk to you and your family about the range of home care supports available to you generally and from Uniting in particular.

It is always great to hear from those who have used and who currently use our services. Feedback provides us with an opportunity to tailor our offering to better meet the needs of older people and their families.

Regards

Saviour Buhagiar

Uniting NSW.ACT Director Residential and Health Care

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