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Faced with the dilemma of living interstate with no possibility of travelling to Melbourne due to the Covid-19 lockdown and border closures, I recently found myself in the unenviable position of having to choose and Aged Care facility for my elderly Mum, after she suffered a serious fall at home. The process seemed extremely daunting especially whilst under stress and concern for my Mum’s wellbeing.
I was fortunate to have a guardian angel in my Care Guidance South East Manager Irina, to guide me along the way. Her kindness and understanding shone through at a very difficult time. With her caring manner and support sourcing numerous facilities for me to take into consideration. The task was made even harder due to the fact I was unable to visit any of the homes on offer and I took a huge leap of faith entrusting Irina’s expertise, which was definitely worth it. I was then able to make a decision with confidence, one that would not only suit my Mum but also proved her with excellent care as a top priority.
Special thanks must also go to Director – Operations Ian and Social Worker Jas, you were great help and for your support dealing with the myriad of forms and documents required by the various government agencies and enabling me to navigate through an unfamiliar process.
I will be forever grateful to the Care Guidance Team and appreciate all their time and effort and would highly recommend their services.
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We are a Malaysian-Chinese family who has never had any relative who has had a family member enter an aged care facility. A bit of family background just to give perspective on how difficult the journey has been.
Dad’s health and mobility had deteriorated to the point where he was having falls on a regular basis. He was admitted to the hospital following a fall which ended up needing two surgeries. In those seven weeks, the family was in complete disarray as we realised we could no longer look after him at home but we were paralysed and overwhelmed with the process of getting the help he needed.
Dad was moved between two hospitals and I tried to speak to the geriatrician and nurses however I was not getting any traction. In the second hospital, I finally received one phone call that would give me the answers and the clarity we were searching for. The phone call from Care Guidance was not only insightful, it provided me with step-by-step instructions on what to consider, commencing from shopping around for facilities, the exact Centrelink form that was applicable, sorting out powers-of-attorney and within ONE WEEK, dad was admitted into a home, one kilometre from our house.
The call from Care Guidance was an absolute god-send. The person on the other end of the phone not only knew exactly what they were talking about, the understood where we were at and what we had to do. They were sensitive to our specific situation and listened to what I had to say, providing options and recommendations that I was not even aware was available. As an example, they had intimate details of many of the facilities in the area. No amount of tours would have given me the insight they had. I was literally breathless after this conversation just from the sheer relief of finally getting all of the answers to all of the questions I didn’t even know I had.
Once we decided on the home, things happened unbelievably swiftly. Care Guidance organized tours with the facilities and sent a person to do the tour with us! Till this day I do not know how things were organised so quickly behind the scenes. We will be forever grateful for the help Care Guidance provided us during an incredibly stressful and confusing time. Needless to say, I would have no hesitation recommending Care Guidance to anybody who is navigating the care of elderly citizens.
