A woman living with multiple sclerosis has won the right to have sex therapy funded by the National Disability Insurance Scheme, but disability advocates are calling for the scheme to also extend to sex workers. The woman applied to have sex therapy for “sexual release” funded under her NDIS plan, but was initially refused. The woman appealed, and the Administrative Appeals Tribunal has now decided in her favour, arguing that sex therapy is a “reasonable and necessary support” for her...

  A leading dietician says the aged care industry has long known operators aren’t spending enough on residents’ food, and it’s time solutions began to be implemented. Dr Cherie Hugo, dietician and founder of The Lantern Project, told HelloCare that witness comments yesterday claiming some operators spend as little as $6.50 per resident per day on food come as no surprise. “We’ve been talking about this for a long time,” Dr Hugo said. “It’s nothing new.” Dr Hugo said she established...

Night shift is a common part of many aged care worker’s lives. Some enjoy it and come to prefer to work at night, while others never get used to the disruption night shift causes to the physical, emotional and social fabric of their lives.  There’s a huge amount of interest - both anecdotally as well as in the field of academia - in the topic of managing to get enough sleep while working at night. Here at HelloCare, we became...

This Thursday, 11th of July is Cheer up the Lonely Day, which serves as an important reminder that feelings of loneliness are unfortunately a common occurrence for many, particularly senior Australians. So how can we ensure our ageing population feels included and cared for? Unfortunately, loneliness affects a disproportionate number of senior Australians and the issue has become much more than an unfortunate situation – it is a serious health concern, and one which should be a public health priority...

New data reveals almost half of survey respondents aged 65+ years do not feel heard or understood. New research released today by the nation’s peak body for spiritual care and ageing, Meaningful Ageing Australia, shows almost half of Australian survey respondents (41.8 percent) aged over 65 years do not feel their identity is truly heard or understood by their loved ones. The new national online study, comprising 1000 Australians aged over 65 years, indicated 55.6 percent of respondents...

    Older people are at greater risk of falling, and when that happens our ageing bodies are more likely to suffer more severe consequences. There is a lot being written about this from various perspectives. These include reasons for increased falls, ranging from domestic hazards to various physical conditions, and ways of preventing falls, ranging from fall-proofing homes to a variety of balance-improving exercises. But in scanning the sorts of advices available I haven’t found the approach that is...

Apathy can be one of the most distressing symptoms of dementia. Seeing a loved one withdraw from the world and impossible to reach can be extremely worrying and upsetting for family. Apathy makes it difficult for someone to enjoy life, and it can even accelerate cognitive decline and increase mortality rates.  Yet there is little research on the topic of apathy. And in care it is often overlooked, with the focus falling to more disruptive symptoms, such as aggression...

When a young person is diagnosed with dementia, there are limited options available for them when it comes to the time they can no longer remain living at thome. Many end up living in residential aged care facilities for no other reason than it was the only option available to them. However,  Natasha Chackwick, chief executive officer and founder of NewDirection Care, believes ‘traditional’ aged care facilities are usually not suitable for people with young onset dementia, and smaller...

Online retailer Amazon has come under pressure for selling physical restraints on its website that are intended to be used to restrain people who are living with dementia. Amazon sells several types of physical restraints online, including hand control mittens, belt restraints, upper body jackets, and, perhaps most shockingly, a full body “binding sling”. The online descriptions of the products say they can be used on patients experiencing drug withdrawal, psychiatric patients, and for those living with dementia. Physical restraint...

A woman living with multiple sclerosis has won the right to have sex therapy funded by the National Disability Insurance Scheme, but disability advocates are calling for the scheme to also extend to sex workers. The woman applied to have sex therapy for “sexual release” funded under her NDIS plan, but was initially refused. The woman appealed, and the Administrative Appeals Tribunal has now decided in her favour, arguing that sex therapy is a “reasonable and necessary support” for her...

Sitting in attendance at a Royal Commission Community Forum can be an extremely confronting experience, but amongst all the heartbreaking personal accounts of abuse and neglect of elderly people, the one story that affected me the most didn’t actually involve an elderly person at all.  A young mother in a wheelchair who had been severely disabled in an accident was assisted to the microphone by a personal carer who then proceeded to read out a letter that detailed the...

  A leading dietician says the aged care industry has long known operators aren’t spending enough on residents’ food, and it’s time solutions began to be implemented. Dr Cherie Hugo, dietician and founder of The Lantern Project, told HelloCare that witness comments yesterday claiming some operators spend as little as $6.50 per resident per day on food come as no surprise. “We’ve been talking about this for a long time,” Dr Hugo said. “It’s nothing new.” Dr Hugo said she established...