Aged Care
Aged Care supports older people to remain living safely and with dignity in their own homes, even as their needs become more complex. Over the past year, the service has continued to see increasing levels of mental health need, loneliness, social isolation, and poverty among the people it supports. For some, financial hardship is delaying access to primary health care, while others need wraparound support from health professionals or social services that sit beyond our contracted scope of practice.
Fred and Lisa’s regional visit with the Northwest team
Growth in Rotorua has been a significant feature of the year, with client
numbers increasing from 260 to 360 and 30 new support workers employed. Alongside this growth, new partnerships are being formed with local iwi providers, strengthening local connections and creating opportunities for more integrated support.
To respond to increasingly complex client needs, we have introduced dementia training and behaviours of concern training for support workers. These developments are helping kaimahi support older people in challenging home environments while maintaining safe, appropriate boundaries of care.
New partnerships are being formed with local iwi providers.
The service continues to receive positive feedback about the care it provides, particularly in helping older people remain at home and, where it is their wish, pass away at home. However, sector-wide pressures remain. NASC wait times are creating referral backlogs and leaving some clients under-supported as their needs increase. Workforce pressures also continue, with rising petrol costs highlighting the financial vulnerability of some support workers and ongoing reliance on a largely migrant and ageing workforce.
Aged Care’s year has therefore been marked by both growth and challenge: expanding services, stronger local partnerships, and committed care, alongside increasing complexity, system pressures, and the need for sustainable workforce support.
