9 Key Aged Care Home Considerations for People Living with Dementia

Before you start looking for aged care, remember that having your loved one stay in their own home for as long as possible is always best for their wellbeing. You can contact My Aged Care for support with cooking, cleaning, bathing, shopping and other care needs. But of course, care needs are complex, and sometimes an aged care home is absolutely the best option.

If full time care is needed, the first step is to contact My Aged Care for an assessment. The waitlists for assessments can be long, so it’s better to do it sooner rather than later.

Here are some key questions to assist you in making the best choice when choosing an aged care home for someone who is living with dementia.

1. Is there a dementia-specific unit? 

Not all aged care homes have dementia-specific units, so this is one of the first questions to ask. While the government doesn’t require aged care homes to have any dementia specific training, or to be run in a way that differs from the rest of the facility, these units are generally more secure than a general unit. Since 60% of people living with dementia are prone to wander, security is an important factor.

2. Does the facility have a familiar home-style layout?

Is the environment is home-like, or hospital-like? How much privacy your loved one will have? In most aged care homes, residents will have their own room with a lockable door (although staff have keys). However, there are homes where residents are required to share a room. When you visit, pay attention to the noise levels, and to whether staff are respectful of resident’s spaces by knocking and pausing briefly before entering rooms.

3. Does the aged care home routinely provide meaningful activities to enhance wellbeing?

Aged care homes often employ staff such as diversional therapists or activity coordinators to give residents focused events throughout the day, but it is worthwhile finding out exactly what types of activities are provided. Ideally, the home will prioritise activities that have been shown to slow cognitive decline, such as cooking, craft, art therapy, singing and dancing. While there’s a place for bingo and movies, the best aged care facilities will offer a lot more variety.

When you visit the facility, you can always check the activities schedule for yourself (you’ll usually find it pinned up in a common area) and get a feel for what’s being offered. It’s also helpful to look around for “signs of life”. For example, I recently visited the dementia ward at Ascott Gardens Orange; there were pots outside that had been freshly painted by residents and were out to dry.

4. Does the aged care home prioritise movement?

We have known for quite a while now how important regular physical activity is for maintaining good mental health, which should be a priority at any aged care home. In addition to physio, proactive aged care homes also schedule regular walks with residents who are more mobile. This is highly enjoyable for most residents, especially when these walks are in green spaces.

5. Does the aged care home provide well-designed outdoor spaces?

These should be easily accessible, interesting, safe and secure. Residents should be free to come and go from these spaces, there should be fixed seating, and residents should have the ability to easily return indoors.

6. Does the home employ mostly full time and/or part time staff to work In the dementia-specific unit?  

Having consistent staff in the dementia unit, with the majority of employees being full time or part time, is very important. Regular staff are more likely to understand your loved one’s specific needs, frustrations and personality, and can therefore care for them better. A consistent care team also fosters a feeling of safety for a person with dementia, and facilitates improved communications between staff and families.

7. Can your loved one afford the aged care home?

Some aged care homes require payment of a RAD (Refundable Accommodation Deposit) , while others accept pensioners and take a large portion of the pension as fees. It’s worthwhile checking before you visit.

8. Do the residents look mostly happy? Do the staff?

Paying attention to the staff and residents will give you a good idea of what the environment is like. Are staff engaging with residents with kindness and gentle voices? Are residents engaging with each other?

9. How big is the ward?

Studies have shown that the physical environment of small-scale living facilities (up to 8 residents) can be highly beneficial for people with dementia. However, the same studies also emphasise the importance of these facilities providing residents with meaningful activities and using the physical environment to its full extent (in other words, small-scale alone isn’t enough). Dementia units in Orange are typically around 20 residents, so this may be one requirement that currently cannot be met locally. We are hopeful this will change.

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On a final note, it may be better to have the dignity of choice by putting your loved one’s name down in a few places, since wait lists can be many months or even years. Keep calling the appropriate administration person every month or so to check if a space is opened up; most facilities don’t offer places in the order of who has been on the wait list the longest, but rather who they perceive is in the greatest need. So it can pay to stay front of mind.

Aside from these 9 factors to consider when choosing an aged care home, what do you think is important in an aged care setting for people living with dementia? Please let us know.