practical living
Small steps , big changes
Older citizens need to be empowered to create inclusive communities and to demand changes to the way agedcare services are provided .
By Carrie Hayter
Older people ’ s lives are rich and diverse , but these experiences are often downplayed when they use aged-care services . Despite the introduction of consumer directed care , providers may not support the choices of older people nor foster their participation and connection to local communities . Furthermore , older people and their allies often lack the knowledge and skills required to use agedcare services to support their connections to their local community .
The transition to more personalised and individualised funding provides significant opportunities for older people , their allies , and services that support them , to think and act differently . Rather than seeing ageing as a deficit , older people and their allies have assets and resources that can be used to change people ’ s lives . Some recent research projects and community initiatives with and by older people have shared the lived experiences of older people and their allies to challenge ageism and build connections in their local communities .
LIVED EXPERIENCES OF OLDER PEOPLE Understanding and hearing the lived experiences of older people living in aged care is important . A recently completed research project , Inside Aged Care , investigated the day-to-day lived experience for residents of one aged-care facility in Brisbane .
The project was led by Queensland University of Technology researchers
16 agedcareinsite . com . au