Jubilee grows in strength

Thank you to our clients, families, employees and volunteers for your messages of support on my recent reappointment to the position of executive director of Jubilee Community Care.

The Board of Jubilee and I are aware of the challenges ahead to ensure we deliver the quality of service and support to you that have underpinned the history of Jubilee. A number of Board members, myself and many of our existing employees were part of that history and, together with new Board members and employees, we are motivated and committed to ensure we deliver the highest quality of services and supports to you as your service provider.

I am delighted to inform that we have been fortunate to bring back into our employment a number of key staff with knowledge and experience of processes and procedures in care coordination, finance, payroll and administration.

We are recruiting a manager for aged care services to lead our care coordinators and a client support coordinator with registered nurse experience. These two positions will provide needed support to our existing client support coordinators for the benefit of clients, families and employees.
We are advertising for the new roles of human resource manager and human resource assistant who will have responsibilities for all aspects of human resources and will include first-line supervision and communication with support workers, conflict resolution, competency assessment and performance appraisals. The changes will ensure HR best practice and streamline and strengthen the human resource area of Jubilee for the benefit of employees and clients.

We are recruiting additional support workers to meet the service needs of clients. Please be aware if you have multiple services on a day or services on different days throughout the week that most support workers work part time so you may receive services from different support workers. It is not always possible to roster the same support worker to a client’s service because of their unavailability due to the person’s chosen workdays/times/sickness/annual leave etc. Jubilee will always try to roster a support worker to your agreed time/day of service.

Regrettably, on occasion we may have to offer you a service at a different time or day due to the shortage of staff within our industry. This situation is a challenge to our rostering staff but please be assured that whilst as people we are all different, we do induct and train support workers in a consistent way to provide an acceptable level of service. Furthermore, we are always asking employees if they would like to extend or change their availability, even on a short-term basis.

We have deployed additional resources within our finance area to address the unacceptable level of administration experienced by clients and families for which, on behalf of Jubilee Community Care, I sincerely offer my apologies. I can assure you it is the aim of the Board, finance staff and myself to bring about a speedy resolution to the issues of client billing, budgets and the issuing of monthly statements.

I ask for your continued support and patience whilst we work through the operational challenges ahead.

Kind regards, Shaun Riley, Executive Director

A diagnosis of dementia can be confronting, upsetting and unsettling but be assured support is at hand.

According to Dementia Australia, dementia describes a collection of symptoms that are caused by disorders affecting the brain. It is not one specific disease and is the second leading cause of death in Australia.

Dementia may affect thinking, communication, memory, behaviour and the ability to perform everyday tasks. It will impact on the person’s family, social and working life. It is not a normal part of ageing. Everyone experiences dementia differently.

Symptoms will depend on the cause of dementia and the parts of the brain affected. Common symptoms include memory loss; challenges in planning or solving problems; difficulty completing everyday tasks; confusion about time or place; trouble understanding visual images and spatial relationships.

Other symptoms can include difficulty speaking or writing; misplacing things and losing the ability to retrace steps; decreased or poor judgement; withdrawal from work or social activities; changes in mood and personality.

Dementia is generally progressive. Symptoms often begin slowly and gradually worsen.

If you suspect you, or your loved one, may have dementia your doctor is the best place to start the diagnostic process. Your doctor will consider the symptoms and order screening tests, and may offer a preliminary diagnosis or refer you to a neurologist, geriatrician or psychiatrist.

So what do you do when there is a diagnosis of dementia? According to Dementia Australia it is important, when you are ready, to tell your family or friends about the diagnosis. It allows those who are close to you to adjust to your condition, allow them time to educate themselves about dementia and learn how to best support you and/or your loved one.

Talk to your doctor to ensure you obtain the health care, advice and support you want.

It may also be time to get certain legal documents in place such as a will, an Advanced Health Directive and Enduring Power of Attorney. These ensure the loved ones and healthcare team supporting the person with dementia are aware of the individual’s choices regarding medical treatment and a substitute decision maker can be appointed when that person can no longer speak for themselves.

Support for both the person with dementia and loved ones around them is vital. Jubilee Community Care provides support to both people experiencing dementia and their carers. In the case of someone with early stage dementia living by themselves this can be in the form of medication assistance, cleaning, personal care, meal preparation, social support and other services.

In circumstances where someone with dementia lives with a loved one or carer, Jubilee also can offer in-home respite care Brisbane – taking the person with dementia out to give their carer time at home alone or staying with the client in the home while the carer goes out or attends to their own personal appointments.

During the respite services our support workers, who undergo training in providing care to people with dementia, can prepare meals, assist with personal care and socialise meaningfully with the client around their hobbies and interests.

Dementia Australia also is a source of information, education and support. The organisation aims to support and empower more than 400,000 Australians living with dementia and almost 1.5 million people involved in their care. It has a number of free resources and a wealth of information on a variety of topics.

For information visit the Dementia Australia website at www.dementia.org.au or phone Jubilee on 3871 3220 to find out how we can support you.

Three types of dementia typically affecting older Australians:

• Alzheimer’s disease: The most common form of dementia. It is a physical brain condition resulting in impaired memory, thinking and behaviour. It disrupts the brain’s neurons, affecting how they work and communicate with each other. An individual’s abilities deteriorate over time, although the progression varies from person to person.
• Vascular dementia: Caused by brain damage resulting from restricted blood flow in the brain. It affects thinking skills such as reasoning, planning, judgement and attention. Changes in skills and abilities are significant enough to interfere with daily functioning. It often occurs alongside Alzheimer’s disease or other brain disease.
• Lewy body disease: This is a term that incorporates both Parkinson’s disease and dementia with Lewy bodies (abnormal microscopic proteins inside cells in the brain). This dementia results in changes in movement, thinking and behaviour.

The months are starting to cool down so now is the time to prepare for a warm and healthy winter.There are several tips you can take to keep the cold at bay and to make sure you are as healthy as can be.

Have your electric blankets or heat pads, heaters and other electrical items to keep you warm tested by a qualified electrician to ensure they are safe to use. This reduces the risk of your product being a fire hazard. It is also wise to get your smoke alarms tested annually.

Practice good hygiene to keep winter colds and flus at bay. Keep a bottle of hand sanitiser in your purse for when you are out and about or regularly wash your hands. A flu shot also is valuable.

While it may be tempting to stay cosy and warm keep up some form of exercise. Getting outside for some vitamin D is essential for older people and taking a walk or some other form of exercise is good for your health and your spirit.

Keep up a nutritional diet. Soups, casseroles and other hearty winter meals are perfect during the colder months. Make up a big batch which can be stored in the freezer for later.

Make sure you have enough winter bedding. Flannelette sheets, a warm quilt or a blanket will make all the difference to your quality of sleep, particularly around sunrise when the temperature is at its coldest.

Ensure your socks, dressing gown and slippers are in good condition. A dressing gown that is too long or slippers which have damaged soles can lead to trips or falls. Wear warm clothing and dress in layers.

The influenza vaccine is expected to be available from April. The Federal Government’s Department of Health and Aged Care advises the vaccine is again free for people aged 65 and older.

This year the single vaccine covers several strains of the flu. In people aged 65-plus the Fluad Quad vaccine is recommended. Your body usually takes two to three weeks after vaccination to develop protection against influenza. The highest level of protection occurs in the first three to four months after vaccination.

Speak to your doctor or healthcare provider about getting your vaccine.

Have you considered installing a keysafe at your home? A keysafe is a strong mechanical metal box in which you can securely store the spare keys to your door.

It is installed on the outside of your house and your keys are accessed by a combination code. The combination code will only be known to you and anyone you share the code with. Keysafes also come in a padlock style.

A keysafe is a valuable tool. It can provide peace of mind that a spare key is available if you, family or friends ever need it, and it can be used by emergency services in the case of a fall or medical emergency where someone inside is unable to answer the door. Another benefit is the code can be easily changed should you need to.

The keysafe can be positioned at a convenient level such as chest level or wheelchair access height to make it easier to use and to also make it more accessible when the code needs changing.

Jubilee Community Care encourages our clients to have keysafes. Many times Jubilee support workers, with permission from the organisation, have accessed keysafes to check on the welfare of a client when they do not answer the door during a scheduled service or can not be reached another way.

If you would like to find out more about keysafes and how your Home Care Package funds can be used to install one please phone us on 3871 3220.