November 2024

The Nightingale Dementia Program is a free palliative model of advanced dementia care throughout South Australia and specific New South Wales locations including Port Macquarie and the Hunter.  

The program provides strategies and advice to support people living with advanced dementia, their support units and care providers. The program focuses on promoting choice, wellbeing and forward planning.  

People living at home, in residential care or community settings, can access support through the program.  

A specialist nurse is your single point of contact. The nurse can develop care strategies to enable people living with dementia to stay at home longer, pormote quality of life, have a voice in their future care options and have clinical advice including co-morbidity management and pain management.  

You can access the program by calling the National Dementia Helpline on 1800 100 500 for more information or by visiting the The Nightingale Program website.

MyGovID is changing to myID. The app will have a new name and a new look, but it will continue to be used in the same way. There is nothing you will need to do to prepare for the change in the app.  

The app should automatically update to myID and you will be able to continue to use your existing app. When the change happens, you may see both the myID and myGovID when using your app to log in to your participating government online services. This will not affect your access, and your ID will remain fully functional and secure during this time.  

During this change it is important to be aware of fraudulent websites, text messages and scams. The scammers can make the fake websites or apps look just like a message or notification from myGovID. You will not need to set up a new myID or reconfirm your details. If you are prompted to go to a website, this is a scam.   

To find out more about the upcoming changes to myGovID and how to avoid scams during the change visit the myGovID is changing website.

The Australian Government, Attorney-General's Department (AGD) has commissioned and funded the Australian Institute of Family Studies (AIFS) to undertake research on the abuse and mistreatment of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex, queer and or/asexual (LGBTIQA+) older people.  

AIFS has partnered with Queerspace, a division of Drummond Street Services, to undertake this project and the research will also be guided by a lived experience advisory panel.  

The research will help improve understanding of the experiences of abuse and mistreatment among LGBTIQA+ older people by examining the nature and dynamics of this abuse and mistreatment, its effects, and what effective service response looks like from the perspective of LGBTIQA+ people.  

Ways you can get involved are:  

• An anonymous online survey of LGBTIQA+ adults aged 18+ (closes at the end of November) to capture data about abuse and mistreatment of older LGBTIQA+ people. Read the Participant Information Sheet.  
• Online focus groups and interviews with older LGBTIQA+ adults. To participate in focus groups and or interviews, please contact LGBTIQA@aifs.gov.au 

For more information on the project visit the project website. 

Have you seen the Carers NSW Employment Hub? The hub is a central point for information and resources to help you successfully balance your caring responsibilities with paid employment.  

The hub provides information for carers currently in employment, carers seeking employment and employers of carers. From your employment rights to looking after yourself, the hub offers advice to help better your rights and responsibilities as a carer whilst in employment.

Access the Carers + Employment Hub.

Services Australia have Aged Care Specialist Officers to help you with aged care matters. It is free to access these services. You or a nominee can book a free face-to-face appointment with an Aged Care Specialist Officer through video chat if you have a myGov account or by visiting a service centre.

The ACSO can help you with providing information on the different types of aged care services, checking if you are eligible for government funded services and making referrals for aged care assessments.

For more information visit the Services Australia website for My Aged Care .

Margaret Walsh has been a member of the Council of Elders since 2021. Committed to inclusion and advocating for the rights of older people, Margaret has played an active part in community representation for the Older Person Health Network Expert Advisory Group in Western Australia.  

Watch Margaret’s video here to find out what she and others are working on to give older people a voice to government.  

For more information on the role of the Aged Care Council of Elders check out the Aged Care Council of Elders webpage. 

Dementia Australia has developed a Community Education Toolkit, and it is available now. The toolkit includes educational videos, personal stories, and activities to assist local groups to raise dementia awareness. 

Dementia Australia has put together a comprehensive approach to self-delivering educational sessions about brain health and dementia.   

Take a look at the Community Education Toolkit on Dementia Australia's website.

The Self-care Room is an online place where Aged Care workers can grab self-care ideas, check where they are in the self-care process or find practical resources to address self-care needs. It has been developed by the End of Life Directions for Aged Care Project (ELDAC), specifically to assist care workers, and others in the Aged Care sector, to identify their self-care needs, so they can continue providing quality care to older people within our communities.  

The Room is free to access.  

Visit the Self-care Room to explore.

Free men’s health checks are coming to the Mid North Coast. Check your blood pressure, to check your heart isn’t too stressed. Get a prick in the finger to check your blood sugar levels. Check your cholesterol to be sure your levels aren’t too high. All it takes is 10 minutes.  

Take a look at the Men's Health Van Schedule to see where it's headed on the Mid North Coast, and when.