Care finder services for patients needing aged care support

Care finder services provide face-to-face assistance to vulnerable older people who need help accessing in-home support services. Care finders have a thorough understanding of services available for older people and how to access them for different regions and cultural needs within South Western Sydney.

The role of a care finder

Care finders help eligible older Australians access services and other relevant community supports. Their tasks typically include:

• Assist eligible older people with their My Aged Care applications, provide guidance on services to apply for and attend the My Aged Care assessment where appropriate
• Work through income/means testing and costs (with support from Services Australia as required)
• Help peoples connect with health services, mental health services, housing services, drug and alcohol services, community groups and transport as needed
• Complete high-level check-in on a periodic basis and follow up support once services have commenced
• Build a rapport with clients and providers

Care finders also conduct assertive outreach to proactively identify and engage with people outside of the referral process.

Reasons for requiring care finder support

A person may require care finder intensive support if experiencing one or more of these circumstances:

• isolation or no support from a person (e.g. carer, family, or representative) they are comfortable to have act on their behalf, and/or who is willing and able to support them to access aged care services via My Aged Care
• communication barriers, including limited literacy skills
• difficulty processing information to make decisions
• resistance to engage with aged care for any reason and their safety is at immediate risk or they may end up in a crisis situation within (approximately) the next year
• past experiences result in a hesitance to engage with aged care, institutions, or government
• homeless or at risk of homelessness and has no family or close friends who live nearby to help them find and choose services

For senior Australians who need intensive support

Care finder services are intended for senior Australians who need intensive support, who could otherwise fall through the cracks.

• 65+ years for non-Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
• 50+ for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People

Premature Ageing (e.g. early onset degenerative health condition)

• 50+ years for non-Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
• 40+ for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people

Central intake referral 

Anyone may refer to the care finder program using this one-page care finder referral form:

Care finder referral form

GPs may choose to use the above PDF referral form or install templates for MedicalDirector and Best Practice via the below link:

Care finder clinical software templates

Once your referral is submitted, Triple I will link your eligible patient with the appropriate care finder. Using the client details entered on the referral form the care finder will schedule a consultation with your patient. This process is expected to take one to two business days.

Community members can phone Triple I on 1800 455 511 to link to a care finder.

Triple I is available 9am to 5pm weekdays. Closed public holidays.