Blog

The aged care sector has seen a major shift in the way residents in aged care should be cared for. Robyn McLean from Benetas Eaglehawk discusses the importance of providing individualised and of listening to their needs and preferences in order to support the quality of life. 

Advance care planning is especially important as it assists health professionals to understand what choices and decisions have been made, how someone would like to be cared for, and the direction of treatment plans. However not all residential aged care facilities implement advance care planning policies. Nurse Practitioner Sharyn Speakman from Bushland Health Group discusses her experience and the processes she used to develop an advance care planning policy and procedures for the Bushland Health Group residential aged care facilities.

Seventy per cent of older Australians are still without an Advance Care Directive. Given the expected increase in our older population and the focus on person-centred care at the end of life, our aged care workforce requires support. Julia Todd from Advance Care Planning Australia discusses the importance of ongoing education and training for the aged care sector, and insights from their initiative.

Part of holistic health care is the recognition that humans are sexual beings. Evidence tells us that the sexual needs of patients receiving palliative care are often not met. Brigitte Karle of Neringah Hospital discusses how they investigated gaps in their practice and how they could improve the ability to provide holistic care of their patients including support for intimacy and sexuality. 

The new Aged Care Quality Standards have now come into effect and all organisations providing aged care services in Australia will need to demonstrate how they comply with the new standards. Peter Jenkin from Resthaven discusses the role of Nurse Practitioners in helping aged care organisations integrate the new standards into practice, and thus demonstrate compliance.