Carer services and support

Carers and support services

There are a wide range of supports, programs and services for unpaid carers.

To find out more about Victoria’s diverse community of carers and the support that is available, please visit the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing website.

Victorian Support for Carers Program

There are many organisations that support carers. Carers play such an important role in the lives of so many.

To find your local Victorian Support for Carers Program local service, ring 1800 514 845 (free call) for information and help or find a local service by visiting the Support for Carers Program webpage.

You can contact your local Victorian Support for Carers Program provider directly. You don’t have to go through any other avenue (such as the Commonwealth Carer Gateway assessment) to receive assistance through the Victorian Support for Carers Program.

The Victorian Support for Carers Program (SCP) provides tailored flexible supports to carers based on the specific needs of the carer. These supports may include counselling or respite or other supports that help carers at a time of need. Carers provide care for a partner, friend, family member or loved one with care needs. As a carer, you may be supporting a person with a disability, mental illness, chronic condition, an older person with care needs, or a person in palliative care.

The SCP program focuses on person centred care and support through:

• Providing one-off or short-term support for carers, including goods and equipment, that can add to other services or fill service gaps
• Responding to individual needs of carers through flexible tailored support approaches, including support to address immediate or urgent needs
• Supporting the carer separately or both the carer and the person they care for at the same time and at the same place, for example sharing in an enjoyable activity in the local community
• Helping carers maintain their own health and wellbeing and adding to their quality of life – through respite and through increased opportunities for social connection, and social and/or physical activities that support health and mental wellbeing. For example, carers can receive respite to take a break from their care role, along with social, health and other supports, including personal or financial counselling, a group activity or a massage.

Carer self-assessment checklist

If you are a carer, there are a number of things to consider to make sure both you and the person you care for remain as healthy as possible, both physically and emotionally.

By taking a carer needs assessment and self-assessing your situation, you will better know what resources you may need to draw on in the future.

A good place to start for a self-assessment is to note down how many hours you spend each week helping, supervising or prompting the person you care for with the following tasks:

• behaviour (supervising and understanding why people act the way they do)
• mobility (moving around the house, turning someone during the night)
• personal hygiene (bathing, dressing, using the toilet)
• eating and drinking (making sure they eat and drink, preparing food)
• communication and social participation (organising social activities, help with communicating their needs to you or others)
• health and treatment (giving medicine, therapeutic exercises)
• safety (checking water temperature, making sure someone does not injure themselves or others).

Home and Community Care Program for Younger People (HACC PYP)

The Home and Community Care Program for Younger People HACC PYP provides services to support people birth to 65 years of age who have difficulty with the activities of daily living, and their carers. These services help people live as independently as possible in the community.

Younger people are defined as people birth to 65 years, or Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people birth to 50 years.

If you think that you (or a family member or a person you care for) might find HACC PYP services helpful, contact your local HACC-PYP assessment service usually your local council. They will meet with you to discuss the sort of services you need and how often you might need them. This meeting will usually be in your home. You may want a family member, friend, interpreter or advocate with you.

HACC PYP services available

You can get different types of support, depending on your particular needs.

Help around your home

HACC PYP can help with your normal chores, occasional repairs, or making daily life easier and safer through:

• housework – including regular or ‘spring’ cleaning and laundry
• home maintenance – such as clearing gutters and spouts
• minor works – such as installing grab rails and smoke alarms.

Personal, nursing and health care

HACC-PYP teams can assist you with many regular tasks including:

• personal care – such as help with mobility, showering, grooming, dressing and undressing, going to the toilet, eating, exercising and monitoring your prescribed medication
• nursing care and therapy, and information on managing conditions such as diabetes or incontinence
• other health services, such as occupational therapy, physiotherapy, podiatry and dietary advice.

Getting out and about

HACC PYP can help you to keep doing the things you enjoy and to stay in touch with others by:

• helping you shop, cook, pay bills and attend appointments
• delivering meals and group meals to senior citizens centres or community venues
• organising friendly visiting and group activities
• day groups – enjoying the company of others.

If you have complex needs

Some people have more complex needs, which cannot be met by mainstream HACC PYP services alone. In these cases, HACC PYP services can point you to other programs that can help.

For further information

Website – Home and Community Care Program for Younger People
Email – HACC-PYP@health.vic.gov.au

Where to get help

• Your GP (doctor)
• Department of Social Services Tel. 1300 653 227
• Nurse-on-Call Tel. 1300 606 024
• Carers Victoria Tel. 1800 514 845
• Victorian Support for Carers Program local service
• Department of Families, Fairness and Housing