Specialist Wellbeing Support
For Clients Who Need It
Care Guidance's Wellbeing Specialists work alongside your care team to address the emotional, social, legal and transitional needs your clients face every day. Reduce staff burden, improve outcomes and give your clients the holistic support they deserve.
social workers
When to Refer a Client to the Wellbeing Program
These are the most common presentations that prompt providers to refer. If your client meets one or more of these indicators, a wellbeing referral is appropriate.
The individual has little or no contact with family or friends, rarely engages and expresses feeling alone or withdrawn. Little or no contact with family or friends, rarely engages, expresses feeling alone or withdrawn.
The individual is experiencing signs of anxiety, depression, grief, trauma, distress about behaviours, or struggling to adjust to care or changes in health and function. Signs of anxiety, depression, grief, trauma or difficulty adjusting to care or changes in health and function.
The individual has received a Dementia or Alzheimer's diagnosis or suspected decline, increasing confusion, behavioural changes, or family distress related to cognitive change. New Dementia or Alzheimer's diagnosis, increasing confusion or behavioural changes.
The individual struggles to communicate with staff, their family or other residents to express their needs and wants. This could be due to neurological or physical decline. Struggles to communicate due to neurological or physical decline, affecting their ability to express needs and wants.
The individual or their family need support with financial or legal matters (Power of Attorney, VCAT/TASCAT), elder abuse concerns, advance care planning, palliative care, or navigating services. Unaddressed POA, advance care planning, elder abuse concerns or financial entitlements, early intervention prevents crisis.
The client presents with multiple, intersecting support needs, medical, social, psychological, or financial, that are becoming increasingly difficult to manage within your existing care model. Specialist coordination and holistic support are required to prevent further decline. Multiple intersecting needs, medical, social, psychological, or financial, that exceed your existing care model.
Four Areas of Specialist Support
Four Areas of Specialist Support
Our Wellbeing Specialists support clients across four connected areas of specialist social work, adapting to each individual's needs and care setting.
Transition Into Care
Moving into Aged Care, whether residential or a new home care arrangement, is one of the most significant transitions a person will ever face. Our social workers provide structured support to the individual and their family through this process, reducing distress and ensuring the client arrives engaged and ready to thrive.
For providers: Clients who receive transition support are more likely to remain engaged with your service, reducing early exits and improving retention outcomes for your facility or program.
Mental & Emotional Health
Many Aged Care clients are living with anxiety, depression, grief, trauma or the psychological effects of cognitive decline. Our AASW-accredited social workers provide evidence-informed emotional support, reducing the burden on your clinical staff and improving client quality of life in measurable ways.
For providers: Specialist social work support reduces the demand on nursing and care staff to manage complex emotional presentations, freeing your team to focus on direct clinical care.
Coordinating Care
Effective care coordination is the difference between a client who is well-supported and one who falls through the gaps. Our social workers act as a single point of coordination, communicating across your care team, the client, their family and external service providers to ensure nothing is missed.
For providers: Our coordination role complements your existing care team without duplicating effort. We take on the communication-intensive work, reducing administrative burden across your organisation.
Legal & Planning Support
Legal and planning issues, from powers of attorney and advance care directives to access to entitlements and financial management, can become significant barriers to appropriate care if left unaddressed. Our social workers identify these needs early and connect clients and families with the right support before issues escalate.
For providers: Proactive legal and planning support reduces the risk of safeguarding concerns, funding gaps, and compliance issues, all of which create downstream risk for your organisation.
How the Wellbeing Program Is Funded
The program is funded through your client's existing care arrangements, not your operating budget. The right pathway depends on the client's setting.
For clients with a Support at Home Package, the Wellbeing Program is funded as an allied health service within their package. We'll work with you and the client to confirm the right pathway.
In residential Aged Care, the program is embedded and funded through a partnership with your organisation. We'll set up the arrangement that fits your service and your residents.
Not sure which applies? Care Guidance will help you identify the right funding pathway for each client, so referring is simple and there is no cost burden on your team.
Care Guidance Wellbeing Specialists
Every Care Guidance Wellbeing Specialist is an experienced social worker with specialist expertise in Aged Care. They bring clinical discipline, genuine empathy and a deep understanding of the Aged Care system to every client relationship.
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Bachelor of Social Work or Higher
Every Care Guidance Wellbeing Specialist holds a Bachelor of Social Work or higher qualification. Bachelor of Social Work or higher qualification.
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AASW Accredited
All Care Guidance social workers are accredited by the Australian Association of Social Workers, meeting the profession's highest standards of practice and ethics. Accredited by the Australian Association of Social Workers.
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5+ Years Specialist Experience
Our Wellbeing Specialists bring a minimum of five years' experience in Aged Care settings with deep knowledge of the challenges clients and families face. Minimum five years in residential, home care, and hospital settings.
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Flexible Engagement Model
We work in residential Aged Care, Support at Home and hospital settings, adapting our model to your organisation's needs and your client's care context. Residential, Support at Home, and hospital, one model, any setting.
How the Referral Process Works
Making a referral takes minutes. From there, our social workers take over, keeping you informed and ensuring your client receives the support they need.
Submit a referral via our online form or call us on 1300 442 383. Include the client's name, care setting, and a brief description of their presenting needs.
Care Guidance reaches out to the client and organises a time for one of our social workers to meet them for a first session, working around their specific needs and schedule.
Our social worker conducts a needs assessment and begins structured, evidence-informed sessions tailored to the individual, whether in residential care, at home, or in hospital.
We keep your care team informed throughout the engagement, sharing progress, flagging concerns and coordinating with your staff to ensure a consistent, joined-up approach.
We respond to all referrals within one business day. Call us or submit online, whichever is easier for your team.
Trusted by Providers. Experienced by Residents.
From a Director of Operations to the residents themselves, what the Wellbeing Program looks like when it's working.
The Wellbeing Program: Provider Questions
Funding, referral triggers and how the program supports your team.
Still have a question? Call 1300 442 383.
Make a Referral
How is the Wellbeing Program funded?
For clients with a Support at Home Package, it can be funded as an allied health service within their package. In residential Aged Care, it is embedded and funded through the provider. We can help you work out the right pathway for your service.
When should we refer a client?
Common triggers include:
- Social withdrawal
- Anxiety, low mood or grief
- Trauma or distressing life experiences
- Adjusting to a move into care
- Family conflict
- Cognitive decline
- Legal, financial or planning needs that are becoming hard to manage within your existing care model
How does it reduce the load on our staff?
Our Wellbeing Specialists take on complex emotional and psychosocial presentations. That frees your nursing and care staff to focus on direct clinical care.
Who delivers the program?
AASW-accredited social workers with a Bachelor of Social Work or higher and at least 5 years of clinical experience. Together they deliver 10,000+ hours of wellbeing support every year across hospitals, Support at Home and residential care.
How quickly can sessions start?
We respond to all referrals within one business day. Our social worker then meets the individual, completes a needs assessment and begins sessions tailored to them.