Home Care FAQs

About Home Care

What is Home Care?

Home Care is a service that provides help at home over the long term. Home care support is delivered by home care providers and includes a set amount of hours every week which you can use in the way you wish, to support you to stay independent at home.

Home care services include domestic services like cleaning, cooking and home maintenance as well as social services like transport and taking you shopping. It also includes medical services such as assisting you with wound care and medication and taking you to doctors’ appointments and other allied health professionals. We will help you with personal grooming, dressing and showering. We also support your pets taking them for walks or to the vet. There are many more services included in home care and a home care package can be customised to suit your personal needs.

What is a Home Care Package?

A Home Care Package is a government funded program which subsidises your home care services. There are four different levels of home care packages depending on whether you require high level or low level care and each level receives a different amount of funding.

How many hours of home care do I receive every week?

That depends on your home care package and whether it is a high or low level package. You can use the hours as you wish on a variety of services. Below is a guide of how many hours of home care you will receive as part of your package.

  • Level 1 for basic care needs – approximately 2 hours per week
  • Level 2 for low-level care needs - approximately 3-4 hours per week
  • Level 3 for intermediate care needs - approximately 7-9 hours per week
  • Level 4 for high-level care needs - approximately 10-13 hours per week

What’s included in a St Louis Home Care Package

There are many services that we provide as part of your home care package to help you. We will discuss your personal needs and create a personal care plan for you. Below are some of the services that can be included in your home care package.

  • Cleaning
  • Grocery shopping
  • Meal preparation
  • Personal care
  • Health and nursing support
  • Medication reminders
  • Social support and activities
  • Assistive Equipment
  • Dementia care
  • Home maintenance
  • Transport

How do I know if I am eligible for home care?

If you are over 65 years of age and want some help at home, you are eligible for a home care package. You will need to do an ACAT assessment to determine the level of home care that you require.

The team at St Louis will help guide you through this assessment process.

How do I get started with home care?

The first step is to arrange an ACAT Assessment to determine what level of home care package you need. The team at St Louis will guide you through the process. If you would like one of our staff, a family member or independent advocate to represent you through the ACAT assessment process, please call St Louis on 1800 785 684 and we will help get you started.

Who provides my home care?

Once your home care package is approved, it is up to you to choose a provider. St Louis Home Care is a leading provider of home care in both Adelaide and Victor Harbor and we have been in aged care for more than 70 years, so we hope you choose us!

What is Consumer Directed Care (CDC)?

Consumer Directed Care was introduced in 2015 to enable people to choose, how, when and by whom their care is delivered. It gives the power back to you to receive a home care package ideally suited to your lifestyle, and your requirements.

St Louis adopts the CDC approach to our home care package and delivery. Ultimately the intention of CDC is to support you to have the best life you can at home so that you can stay at home and live comfortably, happily and independently. Your health and wellbeing is paramount and is one of the reasons staying at home with some support is so important. The St Louis approach to your home care therefore means:

  1. You choose your goals from your home care packages and review these with your care coordinator so that as your needs change over time, your care plan changes to accommodate it.
  2. You choose the times of the week, days and the hours that you want your home care delivered
  3. You choose by whom the care is delivered
  4. You choose the services that you need and when these are delivered.

Government Requirements and Process

What is My Aged Care?

My Aged Care is the Australian Government portal for you to access aged care services and find out what you need to about packages and assessments. You can call them on 1800 200 422 or visit their website at www.myagedcare.gov.au.

What is an ACAT Assessment?

An ACAT Assessment is an Aged Care Assessment by a team of qualified staff to determine what level of home care you require. ACAT Assessments can be booked on the www.myagedcare.gov.au website or you can call the St Louis team directly and we will help guide you through this process.

How do I best prepare for an ACAT Assessment?

During the assessment interview and process, you will asked about how you manage day to day and what sort of help you need at home. It is important to make sure you receive the right support for your needs.

It is best to think these through before your assessment process and if needed, you can also request a family member, friend or an advocate to be with you during the interview. An advocate is someone you appoint to be with you during this assessment that speaks on your behalf.

For more information about independent advocacy services please call ARAS (Aged Rights Advocacy Service) on 1800 700 600.

Home Care Fees

How much does home care cost?

The Australian Government subsidises home care services. The Government will arrange an income assessment and may request a basic daily fee. This is the maximum you will be charged. Personal circumstances are considered when calculating fees with St Louis Home Care and depending on your circumstances, fees may be reduced or waived altogether.

We work with our clients to ensure that your home care provides all the support you need and that it is affordable for you. We will help you create a home care plan that meets your needs and keeps your out of pocket expenses to the minimum required.

What is the basic daily fee?

The basic daily fee is the amount you will be charged per day for your home care. This fee is from $9.63 to $10.75 per day depending on your home care package.

How do I decide where to spend my home care package?

Once you have completed the ACAT Assessment and know what level of home care package you will receive, you are then able to choose your provider.

Selecting your provider is important to your long term health and wellbeing, as you need to be happy with the carers, their ethics and values and also their experience and ability to deliver quality and caring services.

You are welcome to call St Louis and discuss our home care services. We can also visit you at your home. We hold information nights about home care so please call us on 1800 785 684 to register for the next one.