Elderly Services

The Needs Assessment and Service Co-ordination team assists elderly people to access services that will keep them living at home, safely and independently, for as long as possible. These services for elderly can be funded by ADHB for people who meet the eligibility criteria.

We focus on elderly people over 65 years of age, who have long-term health problems, and are struggling with normal daily tasks such as personal hygiene, housework, etc.

Needs Assessors complete an assessment of needs with the older person, and Service Co-ordinators use this assessment to develop care packages of support services to assist at home.

We also assist with moving into residential care if it is no longer safe for the older person to remain at home, even with support services.

Needs Assessment
We provide needs assessments for people with long-term disabilities or health problems which result in the person struggling to complete everyday tasks such as showering, cleaning, shopping, etc.

An assessor visits the person at home, completes an assessment which identifies the tasks the person finds difficult, and discovers what support others, eg. Family/whanau, community groups, etc., can provide.

Caregivers/Family/whanau/support people are welcome to be actively involved in the assessment process.

Assessors can also refer for more specialised assessments, eg. physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech language therapy, specialised clinical/medical assessments.

We can provide appropriate assessors for Maori and Pacific Island clients.

Areas of Assessment

• Health problems
• Personal care/ hygiene
• Domestic Management/household tasks
• Mobility
• Communication
• Support networks
• Recreational, social situation
• Caregiver support

Service Co-ordination

Once the assessment has been completed, a package of support services, (see below) is developed, if possible, which will support and maintain the person's independence at home.

The needs of caregivers will be taken into account when the package of support services is developed.

This package could include a mix of Ministry of Health-funded services, privately-purchased services, and assistance from family/whanau, etc. 

Types of Support Services:

• Domestic Help - housework, laundry, shopping. 
  (Note: A Community Services Card is required for Domestic Help. Work and Income New Zealand issue these cards, after applying a financial means test)
• Personal Cares - Showering/bathing, dressing/undressing, getting up and putting to bed, toiletting, etc.
• Social Support - befriending visitors, craft and activity groups.
• Caregiver Support - Relief care, daycare, dementia daycare, support groups.
• Provision of information - regarding care of the person in the community, information on disability support groups, eg Stroke/Arthritis Foundations, etc.

Residential Care

If it is not possible for the person to be maintained safely at home, we may authorise entry into a residential care facility.

Ministry of Health require a Needs Assessment to be completed prior to a move into residential care, to ensure that:

a) all other options for support at home have been explored,
b) specialist medical advice and/or rehabilitation has been accessed
c) the appropriate level of care has been identified, ie. rest home, private long-stay hospital, specialist dementia unit, private specialist long-stay hospital.

We assist people with decision-making, provide information on facilities, and authorise entry to residential care facilities.

For more information on residential care click on the link below:
http:/www.adhb.govt.nz/rcline/moving into care.htm

Contact numbers for Needs Assessment/ Service Co-ordination: 
Over 65 years

Phone  - 09 3074949 ext 27852   Fax  - 09 623 6461

For people under 65 years contact Taikura Trust: 

Phone  - 0800 8354672     Fax  - 09 2786315
             - 09 2786314