ACAT (Aged care assessment team)

• ACAT assessment to determine level of care needed and provide referral to appropriate residential or community care (“gate-keepers”)
  • ACAT is a team of health professionals who help decide on the types of care that will best meet your needs, such as home help or the support of an aged care home.
  • The ACAT member visiting you may be a doctor, nurse, social worker, physiotherapist, OT, psychologist or other appropriate health care professional. Their job is to discuss your situation, give you all the information you require, and help you make the best choices based on your individual needs.
  • There are no fees charged for this assessment.
  • CACP (Community aged care packages) – home care for persons who qualify for low level residential care (hostel)
  • EACH (Extended aged care at home) – home care for persons who qualify for high level residential care (nursing home)
  • EACH-D (Extended aged care at home – dementia) – home care for persons with severe behavioural disturbance associated with dementia
  • residential aged care (low level = hostel; high level = nursing home)
• Direct access (no ACAT assessment needed)
  • HACC (Home and community care) –
    • basic help with everyday tasks
    • services provided by a range of individual providers
    • e.g. home help (e.g. housework, washing, shopping), personal care (e.g. bathing, dressing, eating), “meals on wheels”, community transport, community based respite, home maintenance and modification, nursing
  • Commonwealth carer respite centres

NB – There is often a waiting period for services.  Average time from referral to ACAT contact is 18 days.  The time between ACAT approval and access to CACP services was < 1 month (40%)