I have a 58 year old client who suffered a stroke 2 years ago. She is cognitively impaired with little to no insight and her behaviours are impacting severely on her partner of 30 years and this is affecting his mental health. He has moved into a friends house for respite.
I believe this woman requires care in a safe environment where her needs can be met ( nutritional and ADLS )
She is physically frail due to a cardiac condition however, she is ambulant and requires no assistance when walking. She is on prescribed medications which she is not compliant with due to her level of cognitive impairment and poor STM.
How do I request an ACAT for someone of that age?
Hi there,
As you hinted at, your client is too young to qualify for government funded assistance with aged care. To enter the aged care system in Australia, the Commonwealth Government requires the person receiving care to be over 65 years old, or 55 years old if Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander.
Another thought is her partner. How old is the partner? If the partner is over the age of 65 years old, then the partner would qualify for Home Care either through Commonwealth Home Support Programme or through a Home Care Package. You mentioned that her behaviours are impacting severely on the partner. The partner should mention this when speaking to My Aged Care about the home environment. Home care to assist the partner would result in helping your client if that makes sense.
You mentioned that your client is cognitively impaired with little to no insight. It sounds like she may be able to receive care through the governments National Disability checklist for access here:
Their contact number is 1800 800 110 and website is
Lastly anyone can receive home care services at any age, it just means the client has to fully paid for it privately. This can be expensive and not feasible for some people, but I just thought I would mention it as sometimes people overlook it. It may be that some privately funded home care is a solution until things can be worked out with NDIS or My Aged Care. It is my understanding that any money paid for private home care is not refunded if later the client is able to get assistance through a government support program I just wanted to make that clear.
I hope this information helps