Aged care crisis: Families forced to ditch aged care homes for fear of neglect and abuse
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The aged care system in Australia is in crisis. With reports of widespread neglect and abuse, it's no wonder that more and more families are choosing to keep their elderly loved ones at home instead of placing them in aged care homes.
In-home support services can be a lifeline for families, providing much-needed help with things like cooking, cleaning, and personal care. And, as we've seen with the recent outbreak of COVID-19 in aged care homes, they can also help protect vulnerable elderly Australians from serious illness.
This story follows Vittoria Primerano, an Italian great-grandmother who has recently celebrated her 100th birthday at home despite being previously placed in a Melbourne nursing home.
Having previously worked as an olive farmer, Vittoria is said to be a really caring neighbour, making sure that the people in her neighbourhood were always well fed.
However, Vittoria's daughter Maria, said that the great-grandmother's carers in her nursing home seemed to forget to feed her regularly.
Maria said: "The aged care facility enforced their own (COVID-19) restrictions, where it made it impossible to check she was being cared for."
"I knew I had to get her out."
More and more Australian families are ditching nursing homes for fear that their elderly loved ones will experience neglect. Credit: 7NEWS.
Maria said that she believes that her mother was neglected during her stay in the aged care facility — a stark contrast to Vittoria's life in Melbourne's southeastern suburbs during her younger years.
"Mum was a keen gardener,'' Ms Sampey quipped.
"She would distribute the fresh produce far and wide, she really cared for others."
While it was reported that the royal commission in Victoria investigated the COVID-19 outbreaks in nursing homes in the region, Maria said that the initiative is not enough given that most people were "too scared to complain" for fear that they could face repercussions.
She explained: "The nursing homes are a law unto themselves, and my complaints fell on deaf ears."
"I felt like I was in a corner beating my head against a brick wall. There was and is no action happening."
The COVID-19 pandemic has prevented families from visiting their loved ones in aged care facilities. Credit: Getty Images.
The human cost of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to be felt across the country, with aged-care homes bearing the brunt of the virus.
More than 1500 people have died from COVID-19 in aged-care homes this year, with at least one fatality recorded in 596 separate facilities.
The pandemic has also placed immense pressure on home-care services, with 176,000 people using them at the height of the pandemic – a significant increase on the 51,000 people receiving support a decade earlier.
Sadly, as many as 11 people a day are dying in Australian care homes from COVID-related illnesses.
Darren Nelson, founder of in-home equipment provider Solace Sleep, said that the company has observed an increase in operations since the pandemic has begun, noting that most of their orders were from Victoria.
He said that lockdowns have prevented families checking on relatives staying in aged care.
"That was one of the major things - people really were desperate for their family members to avoid aged care," Mr Nelson said.
We understand that moving to an aged care facility is a stressful event in an elderly person's life and it requires a lot of planning and preparation. We recommend checking out this guide on how you can carefully plan and discuss your move to an aged care facility (should you decide to move into one) with your family and loved ones.
Take care, folks!
In-home support services can be a lifeline for families, providing much-needed help with things like cooking, cleaning, and personal care. And, as we've seen with the recent outbreak of COVID-19 in aged care homes, they can also help protect vulnerable elderly Australians from serious illness.
This story follows Vittoria Primerano, an Italian great-grandmother who has recently celebrated her 100th birthday at home despite being previously placed in a Melbourne nursing home.
Having previously worked as an olive farmer, Vittoria is said to be a really caring neighbour, making sure that the people in her neighbourhood were always well fed.
However, Vittoria's daughter Maria, said that the great-grandmother's carers in her nursing home seemed to forget to feed her regularly.
Maria said: "The aged care facility enforced their own (COVID-19) restrictions, where it made it impossible to check she was being cared for."
"I knew I had to get her out."
More and more Australian families are ditching nursing homes for fear that their elderly loved ones will experience neglect. Credit: 7NEWS.
Maria said that she believes that her mother was neglected during her stay in the aged care facility — a stark contrast to Vittoria's life in Melbourne's southeastern suburbs during her younger years.
"Mum was a keen gardener,'' Ms Sampey quipped.
"She would distribute the fresh produce far and wide, she really cared for others."
While it was reported that the royal commission in Victoria investigated the COVID-19 outbreaks in nursing homes in the region, Maria said that the initiative is not enough given that most people were "too scared to complain" for fear that they could face repercussions.
She explained: "The nursing homes are a law unto themselves, and my complaints fell on deaf ears."
"I felt like I was in a corner beating my head against a brick wall. There was and is no action happening."
The COVID-19 pandemic has prevented families from visiting their loved ones in aged care facilities. Credit: Getty Images.
The human cost of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to be felt across the country, with aged-care homes bearing the brunt of the virus.
More than 1500 people have died from COVID-19 in aged-care homes this year, with at least one fatality recorded in 596 separate facilities.
The pandemic has also placed immense pressure on home-care services, with 176,000 people using them at the height of the pandemic – a significant increase on the 51,000 people receiving support a decade earlier.
Sadly, as many as 11 people a day are dying in Australian care homes from COVID-related illnesses.
Darren Nelson, founder of in-home equipment provider Solace Sleep, said that the company has observed an increase in operations since the pandemic has begun, noting that most of their orders were from Victoria.
He said that lockdowns have prevented families checking on relatives staying in aged care.
"That was one of the major things - people really were desperate for their family members to avoid aged care," Mr Nelson said.
We understand that moving to an aged care facility is a stressful event in an elderly person's life and it requires a lot of planning and preparation. We recommend checking out this guide on how you can carefully plan and discuss your move to an aged care facility (should you decide to move into one) with your family and loved ones.
Take care, folks!
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