Person Centred Care at The Forrest Centre

The importance of person-centred aged care

 At The Forrest Centre, we believe a person-centred approach that puts people, their own experiences and their quality of life at the forefront is the key to delivering quality aged care.

 While it might sound obvious, recent enquiries into aged care in Australia highlight that not all providers take this approach. For us, person-centred care is everything – it underpins every decision we make and determines the standards we set.

 Person-centred aged care means older people are active participants and partners in their own care. It recognises the unique identity, preferences and needs of each individual and fosters a more respectful and compassionate caregiving environment. It is underpinned by core principles that are at the heart of our service – respect, dignity, compassion, support, open communication, and opportunities to provide feedback.

 Person-centred aged care is crucial because it has positive and significant impacts on the people we care for, including their overall wellbeing, health outcomes, autonomy, and quality of life.

Flinders University research from 2021 identifies the themes vital to the provision of quality aged care, including:

·         Treating people with respect and dignity

·         Acknowledging and supporting identity (cultural, religious etc.)

·         Relationships between people and staff

·         Fostering social relationships and the community

·         Providing support to older people in making informed choices

·         Supporting older people’s overall health and wellbeing

·         The ability to make complaints and provide feedback.

Similarly, the Australian Government’s Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission makes it clear that everyone in aged care has the right to be safe, to be treated with dignity and to receive high quality care and services.

 The Commission also suggests what person-centred aged care looks like, saying that aged care providers focused on person-centred care do the following:

 ·         Talk to people about their preferences. Have lots of conversations and support people to be as independent as possible and maintain their connections to people and community.

·         Support people to take risks and respect their decisions. ‘Dignity of risk’ is another way of saying people have the right to live the life they choose, including making decisions about their care and services even if those choices involve some risk.

·         Work with people and their families/representatives to understand needs, goals and preferences.

At The Forrest Centre, we are proud to say that we meet and aim to exceed this definition for quality, person-centred aged care. Whether people receive in-home support or move into one of our residences, we work with them to ensure they receive care that meets their needs by understanding their goals and which activities and relationships are important to them.

 We focus on each person’s physical, emotional and spiritual needs and honour their choices to ensure they live the life they choose with dignity, respect and understanding.

If you have any questions about our person-centred care approach, please drop us a line: https://forrestcentre.com.au/contact-us