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Do I need an aged care home?
Aged care homes are for older people who can no longer live in their own home, and who have been assessed by an Aged Care Assessment Team (ACAT or ACAS in Victoria) (more information) as needing the type of care that an aged care home provides.
Read more: About getting an assessment
A carer, a member of your family or a friend may help you make the decision to begin finding out about aged care, but ultimately the decision to move into an aged care home is yours.
Aged care homes provide accommodation, personal and nursing care. They also provide furniture and equipment, staffing, meals and essential services such as cleaning.
Aged care homes are operated by aged care providers. Aged care homes were previously called nursing homes and hostels. Under the Aged Care Act 1997, the terms 'hostel' and 'nursing home' were changed to 'residential aged care home'. They cater for people with both high (nursing home) and low (hostel) care needs.
There are almost 3000 residential aged care homes in Australia, catering for around 160,000 residents.
Read more: About living in an aged care home
Next step: Find an aged care home using the Aged Care Home Finder
Common questions on this topic:
- What sort of accommodation and care is available in residential aged care homes?
- What is an ACAT Assessment and why do I need one?
- Who has to pay for mum's Webster packs?
See more common questions on this topic | See all common questions
