Joanna, 61, has Rheumatoid Arthritis as well as Carpal Tunnel syndrome. She was due to have knee and hip replacements, but she told us “I am not sure how long and painful the recovery will be after a hip or knee replacement. I am not in secure housing to recover, so I have no option but to keep delaying the surgery”.
Shane and Fiona speak to Allie about her role as care finder at HAAG. She explains how to access aged care and housing, and some of the barriers for older renters.
Join HAAG in this informative session at the Corio Library Housing Information Fair to lean more about what we do and how we can help people aged 50+ access affordable housing.
Moya Tucker, one of our community educators, will be at the Mornington Community Hub from 10.00am - 12.00pm to answer your questions about aged care and housing.
Sue is 74 years old and became homeless when her daughter asked her to leave her property in NSW. She moved to Victoria to stay with a friend, who helped her to connect with the local crisis homelessness service, Beyond Housing. She was referred into our program by Beyond Housing Seymour.
Rodney, an 85 year old man, was living in a bungalow at the back of a house in the western suburbs of Melbourne. He has lived independently his whole life, never married and has no children.
The Aged Care Bill aims to legislate a number of changes proposed by the Aged Care Taskforce including Support at Home. Fundamental to receiving support at home is the expectation that older people have a stable home. HAAG makes a number of recommendations to ensure older people in private rental, marginal housing and other precarious housing settings have equitable access to support at home similar to homeowners.
We are particularly concerned by the suggestion that no person under 65 should be eligible for aged care services in any circumstance. If implemented, this would exclude prematurely aged homeless people, or those at risk of homelessness, from accessing specialist aged care services like residential care and Support at Home.
Our clients often age prematurely as a result of cumulative and persistent disadvantage and have one or more age-related conditions. While these people are not aged 65+, they require access to aged care services earlier than the rest of the population. Many of our clients are not eligible for the National Disability Insurance Scheme.
"There is nothing like staying at home for real comfort."