Men are not exactly renowned for sharing their feelings or opening up emotionally. Decades worth of macho infused stigmatism and unfair social expectations have seen generations of male Australians forgo the opportunity to talk about problems, and opt for silence instead. While notions like this might seem outdated in this day and age, sadly they are still far to prominent, and even though attitudes are changing, nowhere is this problem more prevalent than in elderly males. Believe it or not...

The death of a family member can be one of the most significant and difficult moments of a person’s life. Unfortunately, the finality of death assures that there will be no second chances regarding your opportunity to pay your respects, or do what you feel is necessary to honour a person’s passing. Aged care facilities on the other-hand actually have a working relationship with death, and while the death of a resident is obviously significant, people dying can often be...

The recent 4 Corners investigation into the atrocities within the aged care sector was brutal. Footage depicting some of the most frail and vulnerable citizens within the country being manhandled, neglected and abused, had an effect that has scarred the image of aged care in Australia. As disturbing as the footage was, it was highly important for the Australian public to understand the depths of despair that some of our elderly go through. Even though these types of incidents are...

Men are not exactly renowned for sharing their feelings or opening up emotionally. Decades worth of macho infused stigmatism and unfair social expectations have seen generations of male Australians forgo the opportunity to talk about problems, and opt for silence instead. While notions like this might seem outdated in this day and age, sadly they are still far to prominent, and even though attitudes are changing, nowhere is this problem more prevalent than in elderly males. Believe it or not...

In the wake of the ABC’s revealing investigation into aged care, the broadcaster is now calling for members of the public to come forward with information about sexual abuse in aged care. During the Four Corners investigation, the ABC team received a number of reports of sexual assault in residential aged care, which has led them to look more deeply into this issue. Though sexual abuse is an uncomfortable topic to deal with, if we don’t bring the stories to light...

Getting aged care right is difficult. It involves staff training, qualifications and ratios, the entry of for-profit providers and ensuring access in regional areas – many of the issues highlighted in this year’s two-part Four Corners special. A key challenge, from which must of the rest will flow, is increased funding. Medicare – an Australian success story – provides one model. Even the Medicare name works magic. The Medicare levy has been appropriated and boosted in order to brand and part-fund the National Disability Insurance Scheme. We could do a...

New research shows that many men and women with dementia are still enjoying sex. According to a study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, nearly half of men - 46 per cent - and 18 percent of women with dementia are sexually active. The study looked at the sex lives of nearly 3,200 Americans aged 62 years and over. Perhaps surprisingly, the researchers found that 40 percent of those with dementia, partnered, and aged between 80...

Caring for a loved one in their old age is a demanding job, both physically and emotionally. Seeing them in such a state where they have trouble doing the things they love is difficult to deal with. This is especially so if that loved one is suffering from dementia. As dementia is a progressive condition, the emotional strain on you will also progressively increase as they slowly forget parts of their life, one after the other. In this vulnerable stage...

Whether or not it is acceptable to lie to someone in the advanced stages of dementia is a moral dilemma faced by many carers. Take, for example, the following two scenarios. A woman with dementia is anxious because she believes her husband is late to pick her up. She doesn’t remember that her husband died many years ago. Previously, when similar concerns have come up, carers have told her that her husband is dead, which has resulted in the woman...

The death of a family member can be one of the most significant and difficult moments of a person’s life. Unfortunately, the finality of death assures that there will be no second chances regarding your opportunity to pay your respects, or do what you feel is necessary to honour a person’s passing. Aged care facilities on the other-hand actually have a working relationship with death, and while the death of a resident is obviously significant, people dying can often be...

New research shows that many men and women with dementia are still enjoying sex. According to a study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, nearly half of men - 46 per cent - and 18 percent of women with dementia are sexually active. The study looked at the sex lives of nearly 3,200 Americans aged 62 years and over. Perhaps surprisingly, the researchers found that 40 percent of those with dementia, partnered, and aged between 80...

The residents of a Queensland aged care facility have united in protest against plans to build a crematorium within 50 metres of their home. Residents say the proposal to build a crematorium so close to an aged care facility is deeply insensitive. For those in the final years, and even days, of their life, to be confronted with views of a crematorium’s smoke stacks would be unimaginably painful and confronting - not to mention dangerous to their health. Those fighting...