Unless you have are lucky to find and drink from the “fountain of youth”, you will grow old like every other person on earth. As you may already know, old age comes with its set of challenges like the inability to walk long distances and not being able to carry out daily routines as you normally do in your youth.
What that means is you will be needing extra hands or assistance with managing your home, support for an aged or elderly family member, or moving into the aged care home. It’s in response to the above-mentioned needs that the Australian government rolled out government-funded services to alleviate the burden of old age.
Suppose you need help with any of the needs mentioned earlier, you can apply for an assessment with an Aged Care Assessment Team, popularly known as ACAT Assessment. And if you are in Sydney, you will be applying for ACAT Assessments Sydney. However, a lot of people are misinformed about ACAT Assessment Sydney and are hesitant to apply for an assessment. Rest assured, it’s nothing to worry about— the aim of the ACAT Assessment is to test you and determine what form of assistance best suits your needs.
What does ACAT Assessment Sydney entail?
The best place to start is to understand that ACAT Assessment, or ACAS (Aged Care Assessment Services) as it is called in Victoria, is your connection to Australian government-funded aged care services. Nothing more, nothing less.
With that in mind, if you are finding it difficult to live by yourself because of age, an ACAT member, who is usually a nurse or another health care practitioner, will visit you at home for a face-to-face assessment. Part of what they will be looking at is your medical history ( to ascertain your health status), your physical requirements (to assess how much of your daily activities you need help with), your psychological needs ( to evaluate your mental health and fitness) and social needs — whether you have a healthy support network. In addition to all of that, they will also look into any special needs you may have, such as gender or language preference when choosing your health caregiver, as well as cultural needs.
At the end of the assessment, it will be much easier to determine the kind of help you need and the type of service you are eligible for — which could be moving to an aged care home or other Short-term options like occasional visits by the ACAT team.
How to prepare for an ACAT Assessment Sydney
There are two ways to go about ACAT Assessment; you can apply online or put a call through to the ACAT support or get a family member, your personal doctor, or any other health practitioner or social worker to apply on your behalf. However, you will have to give them your consent and provide them with your personal information.
Applying for ACAT Assessment shouldn’t take more than 15 to 20 minutes. And ensure that you have your Medicare card handy before you initiate the process. While you are at it, prepare to share information like your ages care needs and what services are currently available to you, your health concerns, and how you are currently managing by yourself.
You also need to have handy;
- Your Medicare card
- Another valid means of identification
- A copy of the referral from your doctor, and
- other medical and care information that is relevant to the application.
Questions you should ask
On your end, you can also prepare a list of questions for the assessor. Here’re some pointers.
- What services are available in my area?
- How long do I have to wait to get the help I need?
- Can I choose a service provider of my choice based on the cultural background of someone that understands and can speak my language?
- How do I get in touch with you after my assessment?
- How long does it take to get a report after the assessment
- What course of action can I take if I am not happy with the outcome of my assessment?
All of these questions will help you learn more about the options available to you and help you make adequate preparations as you await the results.