How to help your ageing parents get support at home

It’s tough watching your parents get older and start having difficulties caring for themselves. While you can’t stop the ageing process, there are things that you can do to help your parents remain comfortable and safe at home for as long as possible.

How to help your parents to ‘age in place’

It’s a good idea to have an open and honest conversation with your parents, sooner rather than later. Explore together what ageing in place ideally looks like for them.

Where possible, include all relevant family members to ensure that everyone’s expectations are realistic and hopefully align. You need to consider the level of assistance – such as showering, cleaning, meals and gardening – that will help your parents remain in their own home.

Also important is Advance Care planning, which involves discussing and preferably documenting the medical care they wish to receive should they become seriously unwell. This is also a good time to arrange the necessary legal documentation (powers of attorney) and appoint people they trust to act on their behalf for their financial, medical and accommodation requirements if needed.

Understanding your home care options

The best place to start is the My Aged Care website, which covers information about home care eligibility, what packages are available, current waiting times and how to register. Once your parents are registered, a trained assessor can talk to them about their care needs and whether they’re eligible to receive funded services.

A variety of home care packages are available, ranging from level one (the lowest level of support) to level four (the highest level). There is also support available if you are caring for someone at home who is requiring palliative care.

Start planning early

Despite the government investing $531 million in home care packages in 2024–25, there is a substantial backlog of 80,000 people on the waitlist – and this number is expected to rise a further 13%​​.

The wait time across all packages is expected to rise from about five months to six months by mid-2025.

You may wish to seek professional assistance from people like your parents’ accountant, solicitor, doctor, or accredited aged care professionals and home care providers.

Early planning gives your parents the best chance of getting the care they need to remain in their home, when they need it.

This information is general and not provided by subject-matter experts.  Please seek independent specialist advice for reliable, up-to-date advice which addresses your specific situation.​​