The Aged Care System Navigator pilot program is now being trialled in 62 locations across Australia between now and June 2020 as part of a push to make it easier for older people and their families to better access services.
The $7.4 million program is being run by a group of 31 consumer-focused organisations, led by COTA Australia, and will deliver services face-to-face in either group or individual sessions, as well as some additional telephone and online support.
The trials have also been designed to include a wide range of people, including those living with dementia, older Australians at risk of homelessness, and older Australians from ethnically-diverse and LGBTQI communities.
We welcome the program. We often receive requests on agedcare101 for one-on-one support with navigating the aged care system.
The difficult of accessing MyAgedCare, particularly for people with disabilities and those without online access, has also been raised throughout the first round of hearings for the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety.
Lived-experience witness Kaye Warrener testified last week that accessing MyAgedCare for her husband Leslie would be impossible because of the online component.
Even with her background in customer sales, Mrs Warrener says she spent weeks searching for records to bring to the hearings.
It’s time to recognise that we are all different – and not all of us can access care services in the same way.
You can find out if the the Aged Care System Navigator trial will be available in your community here.
You can also read our nine steps to navigating the aged care system on agedcare101 here.
