Summary
Why timing your ACAT Assessment can be the difference between getting the right care and missing out
I recently consulted with a client who has Stage 4 cancer.
I advised him NOT to get assessed by My Aged Care.
Why?
The answer might surprise you – but is everything about why timing is important in the aged care system, and sadly, why blanket advice can leave older people with less than they need.
In summary – RAS and ACAT assess at current need only. Diagnoses and likely course of disease are pretty insignificant.
Assessments are based on responses to how the person is managing on the day of assessment. For my client, he is currently OK with his day to day. He is still driving, independently mobile, is well set up with equipment in the home and has a supportive family that assist him.
He is not yet under palliative care.
If he was to be assessed now, he would likely get very little approved and, if approved for a home care package, be put on a medium priority list that is sadly, not likely to come within his lifetime.
If he was to decline, because he had just been assessed, it would be more difficult to get the assessment team back in.
Unfortunately, in this case, it is better to wait until he either moves under palliative care or starts to notice that his day-to-day function is starting to become impacted and apply for a more urgent ACAT – the team triage and respond to those in urgent need quite well.
Then he will be able to access support to complement care provided under palliative care (once this commences), so he can remain comfortably in his own home and spend quality time with the family.
This is one example of why timing is important.
I have heard it widely spread that older people should be assessed ‘just to be on the system’. I think it’s important, given the difficulty getting reassessed within 12 months should things change and lengthy wait lists for non-urgent assessments, to really think through what is needed and what the goal of the assessment is.
Unfortunately, the system doesn’t work well for older people where conditions change rapidly, so timing becomes important to get the best outcomes working within the boundaries.