How to get an aged care assessment

Step one: register with My Aged Care

Call 1800 200 422 or apply online. You will be asked about health conditions, how you manage daily tasks, whether you have had falls, who helps you now, and your Medicare details. It takes roughly 15 to 20 minutes.

A family member, carer, GP or hospital social worker can start this for you. If someone else is calling on your behalf, be ready to give verbal consent so they can speak to My Aged Care in future without starting again each time.

Step two: the assessment

Australia now uses a single assessment system, so one assessment workforce covers both entry level support and higher level care. An assessor visits you at home, or sees you in hospital, and spends about an hour going through:

• Daily tasks: showering, dressing, cooking, cleaning, shopping, medication
• Mobility, falls history, and how you move around the house
• Memory, mood and cognition
• Health conditions, medications and recent hospital admissions
• Your home environment, including steps, bathrooms and hazards
• Who supports you now, and how they are coping

The mistake almost every family makes

Answer for your worst week, not your best morning.

Assessors can only work with what they are told, and older people routinely understate difficulty out of pride or habit. A good day described well can cost an entire funding level, and the funding level is what determines how much help arrives.

Keep a two week diary beforehand noting falls, skipped meals, missed medication and nights of poor sleep. Have a family member present who will speak up if the answers start drifting optimistic. None of this is exaggeration, it is accuracy.

Step three: the outcome letter

You receive a letter setting out what you have been approved for. That might include entry level services through the Commonwealth Home Support Programme, a Support at Home classification level, respite, restorative care, or residential aged care.

Approval is not the same as a place. For Support at Home there is usually a wait while you sit in the national priority queue.

Read the letter closely. If it does not reflect your situation you can request a review, and if your circumstances change significantly, for example after a fall or a new diagnosis, ask for a reassessment rather than waiting for the next crisis.

Step four: choose a provider

Once a place is assigned you have a referral code, and you use it to shop around. You are not obliged to accept the first provider offered, and you can change providers later if it is not working.

Compare hourly rates, care management fees, weekend and after hours loadings, travel charges and exit fees. Ask for a sample monthly statement before you sign anything.

How long the whole thing takes

Registration is same day. Waiting for the assessment visit commonly takes a few weeks, and longer in regional areas. Hospital discharges are prioritised.

The longest part is usually the wait between approval and funding actually being released, which depends on your assessed priority. If you need help immediately, entry level services are often available faster, and you can buy services privately in the meantime.

Free help getting through it

The Older Persons Advocacy Network (OPAN) provides free, independent advocates who can sit in on assessments, explain your options and push back on your behalf. Call 1800 700 600.

Carer Gateway on 1800 422 737 supports the family member doing the caring, including counselling and emergency respite.

Frequently asked