Call Us (08) 9408 1100

FAQs

General

  • Q. What services do you provide?

    We provide a range of services to suit our care recipient’s individual needs. From a little extra help around the home and garden to social support and complete respite, nursing care and personal care, our skilled and experienced support personnel can help whether it’s for an hour or a week.

  • Q. In what areas are aged care services available?

    Our home care support services are available across Perth from Mosman Park to Yanchep in the north metropolitan region, from Mt Lawley to Lesmurdie and Mundaring in the East metropolitan region and Rivervale to Maddington in the South East metropolitan region. To find out if your suburb is within our service area, please contact us.

  • What are the rights of the care recipient?

    Care recipients have the right to:

    • be treated with dignity and respect
    • expect that their privacy and confidentiality are respected
    • receive appropriate services on the basis of the referral made by the assessment agency
    • retain the right to choose appropriate services
    • be informed of a complaints mechanism

  • What are care recipients responsible for?

    Care recipients are responsible for:

    • the provision of appropriate equipment that meet relevant Occupational Health and Safety standards
    • the maintenance and repair of all equipment
    • treating staff with dignity and respect

  • What is the complaints process?

    1. Care recipients are encouraged to resolve conflicts with the person concerned in the first instance.
    2. If a care recipient has a cause for concern over any matter relating to the delivery of services that cannot be resolved with the person concerned, it can be referred to the Director.
    3. All complaints will be recorded on the Company Complaints Record Form.
    4. Care recipients have the right to privacy and respect. All company personnel will treat care recipient concerns in a confidential manner.
    5. Care recipients have the right to use an advocate.

Home Care Packages

  • What are the levels of care?

    There are four levels of home care packages:

    • Home Care Level 1 – to support people with basic care needs
    • Home Care Level 2 – to support people with low level care needs
    • Home Care Level 3 – to support people with intermediate care needs
    • Home Care Level 4 – to support people with high care needs

  • How are packages structured?

    The Government home care package is paid to a provider in respect of a home care place occupied by a consumer. It is not paid directly to the consumer. The Home Care Package budget consists of five components.

    • The government contribution (subsidy) which is based on the package level you receive.
    • Other government supplements that you may be eligible to receive under the package (Ie., Dementia supplement).
    • The Basic daily fee which is capped at 17.5% of the single basic Age Pension. The rate increases on 20 March and 20 September each year in line with changes to the Age Pension.
    • Centerlink will ask you to provide information about your assets. IF you earn over $45,000 per year, you will be asked to pay an “income-tested care fee” as well as the basic daily fees. Note: That the government contribution will drop by an equal amount.
    • You can contribute a “Top-up Fee” for additional services that would not otherwise be funded under the HCP.

  • How do I know what Home Care Level would be allocated to me?

    You will need to organise an assessment by a member of a local Aged Care Assessment Team (ACAT). Either through your GP or calling the ACAT team in your area. The level they assign to you will determine your entitlement.

  • How much do TPG Aged Care Charge?

    Please contact us to discuss your needs and determine what fees are involved.

  • What if I cannot afford the fees?

    If you think that you will face financial hardship when paying the required fees, you can ask Centrelink to be considered for financial hardship assistance. Each case is considered on an individual basis.

  • How many hours of service can be provided under the different levels.

    TPG Aged Care is able to provide the following hours of service (assessed on the rate for personal care, domestic assistance, gardening services, etc) as follows –

    • Level 2 – 5 hours per week
    • Level 3 – 10 hours per week
    • Level 4 – 14 hours per week

  • What qualifications do care staff hold?

    All care staff providing personal care, respite and social support hold a Certificate III in Individual Support (or its equivalent).

  • Can care staff provide support for transport to social outings, doctors, hospital appointments, shopping, etc?

    Yes, this is known as social support and support workers are available for these purposes. A mileage charge of 87 cents per kilometre applies to cover the journey and will be charged to the package.

  • Can I change the services that I am receiving?

    Yes, HCP services are designed to meet the needs of the consumer. We do ask that you speak to your Case Manager and give a few days notice of any change that you require.

  • Can I receive help to understand my entitlement?

    My Aged Care (MAC) is the gateway or the entry point to aged and community care services in Australia. MAC is both a website and a national contact centre. The MAC website, www.myagedcare.gov.au, allows consumers to find information on aged and community care services.

Veterans

  • Can a DVA Veteran access a Home Care Package?

    Yes. Entitled persons under the VHC program can have both VHC and HCP services. However you can’t have the same services (i.e, Domestic Assistance) form both programs – see Answer 2 below.

  • If a DVA Veteran accesses a Home Care Package do they lose their entitlement to Veterans’ Home Care services?

    No. Entitled persons have the same right of access to other community and aged care programs, as any other member of the community.

    The following extract has been taken from the VHC Manual – General 2017:

    Consequently, entitled persons who have accepted a Home Care Package may be able to direct that some of the services be provided using their Gold Card, which then frees up their Home Care Package budget for other services that cannot be provided under Gold Card arrangements.

    Entitled persons may access all VHC services at the same time as accessing different services from the Home Care Package (e.g. Domestic Assistance and Respite Care from the VHC Program and case co-ordination, clinical nursing, personal care, social support and centre-based respite from the Home Care Package). However, entitled persons accessing services under the Home Care Package cannot duplicate the services they are receiving with the same services from the VHC Program.

  • What do the different levels of care mean?

    The levels have been decided upon based on the assessed needs of a potential user. They are:

    • Home Care Level 1 – to support people with basic care needs
    • Home Care Level 2 – to support people with low level care needs
    • Home Care Level 3 – to support people with intermediate care needs
    • Home Care Level 4 – to support people with high care needs

    A HCP subsidy relevant to the assessed level of care is paid to the approved provider chosen by the HCP recipient.

  • How do I know what Home Care Level would be allocated to me?

    You will need to organise an assessment by a member of a local Aged Care Assessment Team (ACAT). The level they assign to you will determine your entitlement.

  • Can I receive help to understand my entitlement?

    My Aged Care (MAC) is the gateway or the entry point to aged and community care services in Australia. MAC is both a website and a national contact centre. The MAC website, www.myagedcare.gov.au, allows consumers to find information on aged and community care services.

    TPG has allocated a staff member to visit DVA veterans (at no cost) to explain the entire process. Please call the office on 9408 1100 and speak to Linda.