About this Toolkit?
Allied health professionals are important team members in aged care. They help older people stay independent in their lives, and support as health declines. They are recognised in the Palliative Care Australia guidelines and the National Palliative Care Strategy.
In palliative and end of life care, these professionals use their special skills to:
- make life better and reduce symptoms for older people
- help people get care at home if they want
- guide people through the aged care and palliative care systems
- work with other health team members to give the best care as needs change.
The Work Together section of the ELDAC Care Model helps aged care staff and health professionals work together to support older Australians at the end of their life. It follows national palliative care policies and practices. The ELDAC Toolkits help plan and deliver care and offer useful resources.
This Toolkit gives allied health professionals (AHPs) resources to address issues in caring for older people nearing the end of life. This could be at home or in aged care.
Where older people receive palliative care affects how allied health teams work with them, especially in referrals, funding, and communication to ensure patient-centered care. The Allied Health toolkit includes sections on:
ELDAC has also created toolkits to support the delivery of care at the end of life in Home Care and Residential Aged Care. These offer more setting specific information on the recognition and care of people at end of life, advance care planning and bereavement.