Supporting older Aboriginal people to access CHSP services through My Aged Care
To take effect from 1 August 2016 FINAL DRAFT
Supporting Aboriginal people to access CHSP services through My Aged Care 2
Overview
This Information Sheet describes supported pathways through My Aged Care for older Aboriginal[1] people needing Commonwealth Home Support Program (CHSP) services. It summarises the way in which older Aboriginal people can be supported through My Aged Care registration, screening and assessment processes.
The steps and processes described below will require collaboration at the regional and local level between Regional Assessment Services (RAS), Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations (ACCOs) and Access & Support services in order for this supported pathway to work effectively.
For information about how Access and Support services can assist people to access CHSP services refer to the Information Sheet Access and Support services: working with My Aged Care and Regional Assessment Services.
Supported pathways for older Aboriginal people
From 1 July 2016 people seeking access to CHSP services for the first time, or existing clients whose needs have changed significantly, need to contact My Aged Care to discuss their needs and have a client record created.
Many people seeking CHSP services will be able to access services through My Aged Care without support or assistance. There will be others who will need information or assistance from their family, communities, CHSP providers or Access and Support services to access aged care services through My Aged Care.
There is concern that aspects of My Aged Care may create barriers for older Aboriginal people wanting to access CHSP services. The supported pathways described in this document aim to:
· Minimise any disruption to service access caused by the transition to My Aged Care.
· Build on current resources such as Access and Support services, where available, to support older Aboriginal people through My Aged Care.
· Establish agreed processes for key service providers. RAS, Access and Support services and ACCOs who will need to work together to assist with My Aged Care registration, screening and assessment processes.
Principles for supported pathways
· Older Aboriginal people should be offered the option of having a support person to help them through My Aged Care if they don't already have one.
· Avoid situations where the My Aged Care contact centre or the Regional Assessment service ‘cold’ calls the older Aboriginal person on their phone. The Aboriginal person may not have a phone line to ring in on, or may not answer the call if the caller is not known to them.
· My Aged Care contact centre and RAS always ring the nominated support person not the Aboriginal person to make appointments or request further information.
· People tell their story only once. Agencies providing services should cross check information on the My Aged Care client record and not repeat questions that have already been asked.
· The handover from the RAS to any CHSP provider should include a verbal briefing.
Who can support older Aboriginal people through My Aged Care?
Family members, community members, ACCOs, trusted agency staff members, Access and Support services and Aboriginal Health workers are typically the people who will support an older Aboriginal person through My Aged Care.
Note: Existing HACC clients DO NOT need to be registered on My Aged Care. Existing clients only need to be registered if and when their needs have changed significantly and they need a reassessment in order to receive higher levels of service or different aged care services such as Home Care packages.
My Aged Care steps
Step 1: Contact centre
What does the Contact Centre do?The Contact Centre collects the following information over the phone:
• Registration – The Contact Centre creates a client record (including client name, address, date of birth, contact details, Medicare number, client representative, reason for referral, service requested etc)
For purposes of My Aged Care registration a support person is called the client’s ‘regular representative’
• Screening – The Contact Centre asks approximately 20 screening questions from the National Screening and Assessment Form (NSAF) and put the answers into the client record. Questions include:
- Can you do activities of daily living: walking, shopping, travel, housework, meals etc?
- Health questions: falls, pain, weight loss, memory loss, risks around the house, special needs.
The Contact Centre then develops an action plan and sends an electronic referral to the RAS for a Home Support assessment for CHSP services (or to an ACAS for a Comprehensive assessment if required).
How can older Aboriginal people be supported to register with the Contact Centre?
· The support person calls the Contact Centre with the Aboriginal person beside them
· The Aboriginal person provides consent over the phone for their support person to assist them to give the required information.
The support person prepares the older Aboriginal person for the phone call by explaining the types of questions that will be asked and collecting as much information as possible before the call is made.
The support person requests that their name be included in the Contact Centre Action Plan as the client’s regular representative. Any call back from the Contact Centre must be made to the support person NOT the Aboriginal person.
Special circumstances: Facilitated registration
Section 3.1.2: of the Regional Assessment Service Guidelines state that potential clients should be encouraged to contact the My Aged Care contact centre to register with My Aged Care. If this is not the person’s preference, the Home Support assessor can register the person using the assessor portal to create a client record. The older Aboriginal person needs to provide consent for the RAS to complete the registration.
Step 2: Regional Assessment Service (RAS)
What does the RAS do?The RAS provides a Home Support assessment which is a home based face to face assessment.
The RAS
• Receives the referral from the Contact Centre.
• Views the client record which contains information gathered during client registration and screening process. A priority rating allocated by the RAS identifies how quickly they need to respond.
If the referral requests that contact is made through the support person (the client’s regular representative), then the Home Support assessor will contact the support person to arrange an appointment for the assessment in the person’s home or usual accommodation, with the support person present.
If another location is preferred, then these arrangements are negotiated with the RAS. The person’s home environment can be assessed at a later date if need be. For example, if the person only wants to access a planned activity group, then assessment of the home environment is not required at this point in time.
Special circumstances: Facilitated Registration
If the Aboriginal person prefers to avoid the phone based Contact Centre, the RAS can be contacted directly for a Facilitated Registration. The support person, with client consent, can ring the RAS and request a Facilitated Registration (see page 2).
The Facilitated Registration process streamlines the registration, screening and assessment processes.
What happens at the Home Support assessment?
The Home Support assessor will
• Conduct a Home Support assessment using the National Screening and Assessment Form (NSAF)
• Ask to see two types of client identification documents
• Develop a support plan in collaboration with the Aboriginal person. A hard copy of the plan can be provided to the client and/or their representative, or the plan can be viewed via the My Aged Care client portal.
• Offer choices of CHSP providers in their area including ACCOs. Clients will be asked if they have a preferred CHSP service provider.
• Make a referral(s) to the preferred CHSP provider. The referral needs to include the support person’s name and phone number so the CHSP service provider knows to contact the support person NOT the older Aboriginal person.
Culturally safe assessments
RAS need to ensure that assessments are culturally safe. Steps to achieve this include the following:
• Assessors in each RAS complete Aboriginal cultural competency training and are familiar with ACCOs and the services that ACCOs provide
• Assessors make sure they understand any local cultural issues or circumstances relevant to the older Aboriginal person before the assessment takes place.
• Assessors read the client record on My Aged Care (if this has been completed) and gather relevant cultural information from the support person before the assessment.
• Ensure the person is informed about their rights and the purpose of the assessment.
• With the client’s consent, the support person and the Home Support assessor share information about the person’s cultural/ environment/health and relevant family circumstances prior to the assessment taking place and, discuss ways to build trust and rapport during the assessment.
Handover to CHSP provider from the RAS
• Handover from the RAS to CHSP providers should include a verbal briefing from the Home Support assessor in order to maximise the provider’s understanding of the older Aboriginal person's cultural and spiritual needs and wishes.
Step 3: Service provision
CHSP service provider:• Receives an electronic referral from the RAS with the support person named as the client’s representative
• Views all the assessment information on My Aged Care through the provider portal
• Contacts the client’s support person who then arranges a date for a service level assessment
• Conducts a service level assessment (with the support person in attendance if this is requested by the client)
• Enters the client’s service information into the client record on the provider portal.
• Provides the CHSP service.
Refer to the following page for flow chart of the supported pathway for older Aboriginal people.
Heather Russell
Manager Service Development
HACC and Assessment Unit
Department of Health and Human Services
Further information: My Aged Care : www.myagedcare.gov.au
My Aged Care 1800 200 433
Supporting Aboriginal people to access CHSP services through My Aged Care 2
Supported pathways for older Aboriginal people
Supporting Aboriginal people to access CHSP services through My Aged Care 2
Supporting Aboriginal people to access CHSP services through My Aged Care 2
[1] Older Aboriginal people refers to people who identify as Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander, or both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and are aged over 50.