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Practice Tip Sheets for Careworkers Advance Care Planning Advanced Dementia Advanced Dementia Behavioural Changes After Death Choices Aged Care Access and Assessment Anxiety Cachexia Sarcopenia and Anorexia Case Conferences Complementary Therapies Constipation Continuity of Care Culturally Responsive Care Communication Distress at the End of Life Dysphagia Dyspnoea End of Life Care Pathways Eye Care Faecal Incontinence First Australians Communication Frailty Grief and Loss among Older People Families and Residents Grief and Loss among Staff Myths about Morphine Nutrition and Hydration Opioid Analgesics Oral Care Pain Management Palliative Care People with Intellectual Disability Communication People with Specific Needs Person Centred Care Psychosocial Assessment and Support Quality of Life Recognising Deterioration Respiratory Secretions Self Care Signs of Imminent Death Skin and Wound Care Spiritual Care Supporting Families Talking about Dying Talking within the Aged Care Team Next Steps for Careworkers
Tips for Careworkers:
Self-Care
What it is: Self-care is a range of information, skills, and attitudes that as a careworker you can use to maintain mental and physical wellbeing.
Self-care can include understanding your strengths, weaknesses, thoughts, beliefs, motivation, and emotions. In palliative care, self-care can also include grief and bereavement support, and understanding how to recognise and prevent burnout.
Why it matters: Caring for others can be rewarding. However, staff working in aged care look after many people who die. As a result, they may experience repeated grief.
Grief over the death of residents or clients is not unusual and may contribute to stress or burnout. Self-care is important to maintain balance in life.
What I need to know: It is helpful to be a member of a team that provides support, reflection, and debriefing. A team may be your work colleagues or a network of people outside of work.
Team meetings, debriefing or regular supervision can provide support.
Do
Report to nursing/supervisory staff if you see signs that suggest a person is not coping. These can include:
- physical and emotional exhaustion
- poor sleep
- headaches
- negativity or feeling useless
- lack of enjoyment
- not working effectively
- absence from work.
Do
Acknowledge your grief and recognise that it is a normal reaction to loss.
Do
Talk to your supervisor and colleagues about what you are experiencing and request their help or support from a professional counsellor if needed.
Do
Develop a self-care plan and strategies that promote your physical and emotional wellbeing. Self-care strategies may be different for everyone; select ones that work for you.
Do
Visit the ELDAC Self-care room.
My reflections:
What support does my organisation provide for self-care?
Have I created a self-care plan and, if so, does it need to be reviewed?
See related palliAGED Practice Tip Sheets:
For references and the latest version of all the Tip Sheets visit
Practice Tip sheets for careworkers
CareSearch is funded by the Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing.
Updated April 2026
Page updated 21 July 2026
