Why discharge planning matters

Discharge planning is how you close that gap before your parent walks through the front door.

Almost one in three older Australians discharged from hospital are readmitted within 30 days. The biggest reason is not the original condition. It is the gap between hospital and home. No home care support set up. No medication management in place. No one checking on your elderly parent during those first critical days of recovery.

Your discharge checklist

1. Talk to the hospital social worker now: They coordinate aged care services and can fast track My Aged Care assessments.

2. Get the medication list: New medications, changed doses, stopped prescriptions. Get it in writing before discharge.

3. Understand their care needs at home: Personal care, nursing care at home, domestic assistance. Get specific so you know what home care services to arrange.

4. Request a home safety assessment: Ask the hospital occupational therapist to check the home for falls risks before your parent returns.

5. Contact a home care provider: A provider with aged care workforce depth can have a trained care worker at your parent’s door within days.

Setting up home care before they come home

Do not wait until your parent is home. The first week after hospital discharge is when elderly people are most vulnerable.

If your parent already has a package: Contact your aged care provider immediately. Let them know discharge is coming so they can increase home care visits, add nursing care at home, and adjust the care plan for post hospital recovery.

If your parent does not have a package: Apply through My Aged Care for an emergency assessment while they are still in hospital, or start with private in home care to bridge the gap while government funded aged care is processed.

The first week at home

The first week is the hardest. Your parent is weaker than they expect. They are adjusting to new medications. They may need help with personal care tasks they managed before hospital. They may be at higher falls risk.

A home care plan for post hospital recovery should include regular home care visits for personal care and mobility support, nursing care at home for wound care and medication management, domestic assistance so your parent can focus on recovery, and clear communication with the family about how recovery is progressing.

How Chris Barnard Health supports hospital to home

Chris Barnard Health is an approved aged care provider and registered NDIS provider delivering home care services and Support at Home across Melbourne, regional Victoria, and Tasmania. We started as a specialist nursing agency in 2010, which means clinical home care and rapid aged care workforce deployment are how we began.

Our aged care specific workforce of more than 1,000 aged care professionals can mobilise quickly for hospital discharge situations. We assess needs, match carers for continuity of care, and have a trained care worker at your parent’s home before the hospital bed is even cold.

If your parent is being discharged and you need home care set up fast, call 1300 602 469. It is what Melbourne’s leading and largest aged care specific workforce was built for. So your parent comes home to support, not an empty house.