Community Options

What is it?

Kiama/Shellharbour Community Options is a case management and brokerage service. The service develops care plans with clients that include strategies and goals to assist the person to remain living at home for as long as possible. Part of this process may include brokering services, that is, purchasing services for the client from outside sources such as nursing services, occupational therapists and gardening services.

A wide range of services are provided and coordinated by Community Options, including:

• case management / coordination
• domestic assistance
• shopping
• meal preparation
• transport
• medication monitoring
• home safety monitoring - Vital Call
• respite in and out of home
• personal care
• nursing
• community access
• life skills development
• advocacy
• lawns and garden care
• equipment purchase and loan
• purchase of disposable items
• one-off projects - cleanups, hire-fees, and minor renovations.

The average hours per week is 7 hours and Community Options is funded by Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care for 50 clients.

Who is it for?

Community Options provides service to people of the Home and Community Care target group, that is, people who are frail, older people, and younger people with a disability, and their carers, who live in the Kiama and Shellharbour local government areas.

The clients of Community Option are high-need and have complex care needs. A client is described as having complex care needs when they require two or more distinct service types to maintain their independence.

Process of referral

Referrals are primarily received from the Illawarra Aged Care Assessment Team, Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care, Department of Community Services and Community Health Centres. Referrals are usually by phone with a faxed copy of client information following. Community Options clients rarely self-refer as Community Options is rarely the first point of entry into the Home and Community Care system.