A care home must be a pleasant and happy place where one can live peacefully. In short, one should feel at home and be able to relax. But unfortunately, finding aged care in Canberra is not easy, especially in a city where you will find more than a hundred of them. For sure, most of them will be a good place, but how do you pick the best one?
As of a 2022 survey, there are 467,194 people in Canberra, and the city is spread across an area of 814 km². Out of the 467k people, 71.4% are born in Australia, and around 17% of the population is above the age of 60, which means there’s a demand for more healthcare and aged care homes and staff.
What Should You Look for in an Aged Care Home?
If you have shortlisted a few places, you can visit them one by one and look for the following things:
- Ensure that the home offers a high level of care for everyone in need.
- Check whether there are enough vacancies and facilities for everyone.
- Read the institution’s brochure or check their website for detailed information.
- Read the recent inspection report of the home by the local or state government/authorities.
- Call or email them asking about everything that you need to know.
What Questions Do You Need to Ask the Care Home Before Finalising the Place?
Below are some of the critical questions you must ask the aged care in Canberra. So, you can proceed further only if you are satisfied with the answers.
So at first, you must ask:
- Whether the infrastructure and its premises are maintained well.
- Is there a garden or courtyard nearby?
- Is the garden or home inviting?
- Are the surroundings pleasant?
- Do the employees seem welcoming?
- Is there a proper air conditioning system?
- Are the rooms well organised and decorated?
Accessibility
- Is it easy to reach there from the city or your home?
- Are there parking spaces?
- Availability of facilities such as parks, shops, stationery, medical shops, etc.
- Is there wheelchair access?
Staff
- Are the employees welcoming and enthusiastic about taking care of old adults?
- Is there a proper ratio of staff to residents 24×7?
- Is there a manager at the facility or a senior member who can attend to your calls and queries?
- Can residents choose if they could have a female or male carer?
- Do the staff have proper qualifications?
These are the main questions you must ask the establishment before you finalise the care home. These questions are enough for you to get a clear-cut idea about the present situation and quality of the aged care in Canberra. And being a city with over 26.1% of the population being catholic and 14.&% Anglicans, there will be facilities to do prayers in the home.
So, apart from the questions mentioned above, you can enquire about these things to get a clearer picture of the place:
- Visitation time
- Day-to-day care routine
- Food (customised meal if needed)
- Social life and other activities
- Fees for extra facilities
- Feedback and complaint options
If you are looking for an appropriately aged care facility in Canberra, you must follow these points and ask the right questions. As such, you can find the perfect home at last. But, taking care of older adults is not easy, and that’s why you need to look for all the facilities, qualities, as well as flaws in the institution.
