Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .

Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2001 Week 8 Hansard (9 August) . . Page.. 2986 ..

(lc) The Commonwealth is responsible for the funding of aged care facility beds and Extended Aged Care in the Home (EACH) packages. There are currently 654 high care places in Aged Care Facilities in the ACT, which includes 30 EACH packages; and 922 separate low care places. These are permanent positions. However, 69 of these beds are provisional allocations, meaning that not all the beds are as yet 'operational', due to factors such as awaiting building work to be completed.

In addition to these permanent places, there are 38 Commonwealth funded operational respite beds in the ACT, as well as another 12 beds which were allocated in the 2000 Aged Care Approvals Round but are awaiting building work being completed.

(2) Of the low and high care places, there are currently 239 Commonwealth funded places in residential aged care homes catering for people who suffer from dementia, and an extra 10 beds allocated in the 2000 Aged Care Approvals Round were provided for respite for people with dementia. These 10 beds will be opened once building work has been completed.

The Canberra Hospital has 2 purpose designed areas available to provide interim care for older persons without medical or surgical issues but requiring admission for challenging behaviour associated with dementia and delirium. If this facility is already occupied, the secure facilities of the acute Inpatient Psychiatric Unit may be utilised.

The ACT Department of Health, Housing and Community Care funds the Burrangiri Centre (which is operated by the Salvation Army) which provides emergency centre-based respite care. Burrangin has a weekday day care program as well as a specific Saturday dementia program. The centre is also funded for 15 beds for a residential respite program. The maximum stay in this program is 15 days, and one bed is kept free for emergency short-term respite.

'Dementia' is a blanket term for a group of illnesses or conditions which are associated with a progressive and usually irreversible loss of mental function. The most commonly known condition is Alzheimer's disease. Depending on the cause of the dementia, the individual's reaction to the illness, and the severity of the dementia will mean that very different care needs will be seen from individual to individual.

(3) Low (hostel) level care residents, and people in extra service facilities (facilities which offer hotel-type services such as higher quality meals) may be asked to pay an accommodation bond depending on their assets and the policy of the facility. The bond is an amount agreed between the resident and the care service, and there is no fixed formula for determining the bond. The bond is refunded when a person leaves the service (either to the person or their estate) less a maximum of $225.50 a month for up to five years.

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .