Public Health Report: Analysis of Aged Care Services in Australia

This report examines the structure of aged care services in Australia, focusing on the primary care approach. It details the government's role in funding and providing services, including home support programs, residential care, and flexible care options. The report highlights various initiatives, such as the Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP), and the involvement of state, territory, and local governments, along with non-governmental organizations in supporting the aged. It also addresses early intervention policies, age pensions, and other financial and health services provided to ensure the elderly remain active contributors to society. The report references key studies and data to illustrate the comprehensive approach taken to support the aged population in Australia, emphasizing the importance of preventing diseases and supporting those with disabilities.

Running Head: Community Health 1
Community Health
Name:
Course:
University:
Date:

Community Health 2
Supporting the aged
Supporting the aged is an important practice in every country. The primary care system caters for
Australians aged 65 years or above. The Government finances the primary care system (Davison
et al., 2017). The Government spends around $16 billion to sponsor the care system, whereby
they provide 94 percent of the funding. People receive care from homes, communities, and
residential homes set for aged. The study describes the structure of the aged care service using
the primary care approach. The study also demonstrates how the Government of Australia has
structured aged care services and the types of care they provide.
The Government of Australia uses the following primary health care approaches to ensure that
the aged get the required services. The Government provides care at home for the aged through
an approach known as the Commonwealth home support program-CHSP. Initial home help for
aged either in the community or homes. They provide services such as home upkeep, transport,
meals, hospital services, and health services. The Government later pays the clients as per agreed
in their grants. The program operates in most of the states and territories except in Western
Australia. It also provides support services to younger people with disabilities to ensure they do
not struggle to earn a living.
The residential care is also provided for the aged in terms of long term, short-term, or permanent
basis. These services include nursing, housing, residential services, and health amenities (Løken,
Lundberg, & Riise (2017). The Australian Government funds the private age care services.
Flexible care is the residential care that offers an approach that caters to older people who need
different care than that. Flexible care includes transition care that is jointly funded state and
territory governments and the Australian Government.

Community Health 3
The Australian Government supports older people to actively contribute to society. The
Government supports the older people though the use of support programs. The Government
supports these programs to finance the aged with specials needs, aged care staff, and providers.
The Aged are allocated places they can receive the services. Groups like the state, territories, and
the Commonwealth supports the aged through funding them. (Wakerma et al., 2017). The
community also supports the aged through volunteer programs. These services are given to the
aged who are in need or have disabilities.
People aged above 65 years are supported whenever there is a need. In recent years, the policies
on the increased emphasis on the early intervention for aged is combined with aging in place. It
is done to ensure that the older can reach residential equipment all the time. The Government
also improves the development of Aged care support services by providing age pensions to
citizens who are over 65 years. The Commonwealth later took control of the payment of the
pension scheme. They also pay a premium to the aged who are 60 years and permanently
incapacitated for the work. The current government support helps the aged to ensure they remain
active to contribute to society.
The Government and other groups are responsible for paying and support the aged in public
through age pensions, assists them in paying rents, residential services, health services, disability
services, and community health care services. Coburn et al., 2019). They also provide indirect
support to the elderly through financial counseling, health care services, advocacy services, and
rehabilitation service. They receive general expenditures in the field of disability services,
accommodation, and health. The state and territory support programs provide housing, health,
and public services. The state provides money and other amenities as the service they offer.

Community Health 4
These support services include care assistance, respite care, home support, and information
services.
The local Government also provides specific support services to the aged. The Commonwealth,
states, and territories support the aged (Smith, 2018). They deal with land management and
accommodation issues related to the aged. The other support program for the aged comes from
non-government support. About 20% of the total welfare services comes from the non-
governmental community sector. The private sector is also involved with the provision of the
support and services for the aged concerning the residential aged health and care services.
Therefore the primary care service for the aged in Australia helps to prevent diseases, support the
aged with disabilities, and ensuring that the aged remain active participants in the community. It
essential for governments to support the old and initiate programs, which will ensure that the
aged are treated well.

Community Health 5
References
Coburn, A. F., Ziller, E. C., Paluso, N., Thayer, D., & Talbot, J. A. (2019). Long-term services
and supports use among older Medicare beneficiaries in rural and urban areas. Research
on Aging, 41(3), 241-264.
Davison, T. E., Koder, D., Helmes, E., Doyle, C., Bhar, S., Mitchell, L., ... & Pachana, N.
(2017). Brief on the role of psychologists in residential and home care services for older
adults. Australian Psychologist, 52(6), 397-405.
Løken, K. V., Lundberg, S., & Riise, J. (2017). Lifting the formal burden care of the elderly and
labor supply of adult children. Journal of Human Resources, 52(1), 247-271.
Smith, D. E. (2018). Estimating Northern Territory Government program expenditure for
Aboriginal people: problems and implications. Canberra, ACT: Centre for Aboriginal
Economic Policy Research (CAEPR), The Australian National University.
Wakerman, J., Humphreys, J., Wells, R., Kuipers, P., Entwistle, P., & Jones, J. (2017). A
systematic review of primary health care delivery models in rural and remote Australia
1993-2006.