Competition off to a flying start
Wednesday, 10 March 2010
COMMUNITY leaders and politicians have backed Messenger Community News' fresh push for stronger neighbourhood networks, saying it will help save lives.
Leaders Back Push
Wednesday, 10 March 2010
COMMUNITY leaders and politicians have backed Messenger Community News' fresh push for stronger neighbourhood networks, saying it will help save lives.
Get Strength for Life
Tuesday, 9 March 2010
Living a healthy, active lifestyle is important for most and COTA Seniors Voice's program Strength for Life is helping people 50 years and over to develop or improve their fitness skills.
A step in the right direction
Tuesday, 9 March 2010
Growing old is a fact of life. Most people embrace the fact greying hair and wrinkles are inevitable, however they relish in the thought that with age comes wisdom and knowledge. But for whatever reason, most of us will need some type of care and someone to lend a helping hand as the years pass.
Nursing Homes Back the States
Tuesday, 9 March 2010
Aged care providers are backing a state push for more federal funding for aged care as a price for supporting Kevin Rudd's health reform plan, saying such a move could empty thousands of patients from clogged public hospitals.
Aged care delegates call for industry reform
Friday, 5 March 2010
A RESOLUTION was passed at the tri-state aged care conference in Mount Gambier this week to urgently call for an industry reform agenda.
Lending a Hand
Thursday, 4 March 2010
In a bid to attract more workers to the aged care sector the Federal Government has announced a $9 million package to promote careers in the industry.
Funding Boost to Support Growing Aged Care Need
Tuesday, 2 March 2010
MINISTER for Ageing Justine Elliot yesterday announced $9.5m in nursing scholarships to train and upskill up to 680 people, particularly in rural and regional areas.
The role of OFTA
Tuesday, 2 March 2010
Office for the Ageing is a division of the Department for Families and Communities. The office supports and administers a range of programs to assist older South Australians.
What is Community Aged Care
Tuesday, 2 March 2010
When people refer to aged care they often talk about residential facilities or `nursing homes'. However, aged care is much broader than this and community aged care is a large and growing system of support for older people to assist them, and their family carer, to remain living at home. This home support is usually referred to as `community care' and is not well known or understood by the general population.
Productive Ageing Package
Tuesday, 2 March 2010
As Australia's peak organisation for older Australians, COTA has welcomed the Rudd Government's Productive Ageing Package as an important step towards targeting the low rate of mature employment.
Bonus Due from Health Funds
Monday, 1 March 2010
About 11,000 private health insurance members will receive an unexpected bonus on July 1 when health funds are forced to reduce their premium payments by an average of $32 a month.
Broken people, Failing system, SA's Shame
Monday, 1 March 2010
It is often said that the measure of a society is how it treats its most vulnerable. If that maxim holds true then what does it say about South Australia that it is charging some of this state's most vulnerable citizens $41 a day because they are occupying through no choice of their own a public hospital bed?
Department of Mean
Monday, 1 March 2010
FRAIL and elderly people stuck in public hospitals for more than a month while waiting for a place in a nursing home or hostel are being hit with a daily bed fee.
New Push for Aged Care Table
Monday, 22 February 2010
Aged Care advocates are pushing for the Federal Government to establish a My School-type league table to compare nursing homes and improve the shortage of information in the aged-care sector.
Get real on costs, seniors tell Rann
Thursday, 18 February 2010
UTILITY concessions should be tied to real increases in costs, the state's peak welfare group states.
THE ELDERLY CAN PAY FOR NURSING HOMES
Thursday, 18 February 2010
IN the long run we are all dead, but in old age who should pay for our care?
This is the hard question avoided by the Intergenerational Report recently released by the Treasurer. And you can bet your bottom dollar it will also be the question avoided when the Prime Minister announces his longawaited "structural reform of the health system" (whatever that means) in the lead-up to the election later this year.
IT'S MY TREAT
Wednesday, 17 February 2010
The State Government is promising up to $98 a year extra to help elderly and lowincome earners cope with rising utility bills - its $60 million first salvo in the election campaign.
Click Here to read the full story
Seniors Welcome Concessions Rise
Wednesday, 17 February 2010
Seniors in South Australia have warmly welcomed the State Government's announcement that it will increase energy concessions by 25% from July 1 this year.
Mr Ian Yates, the Chief Executive of COTA Seniors Voice, said boosting energy concessions from %120 to $150 a year immediately and indexing them by 5% per annum for the next three years was in line with COTA's pre-electino c laims for seniors.
Benefits Cut a Risk to Care
Monday, 15 February 2010
NOT-FOR-PROFIT organisations have warned against a Productivity Commission proposal to change tax policies for the sector.
The report proposes abolishing fringe benefit tax concessions to the $43 billion sector to improve transparency.
Organisations said removing the concessions could lead to cuts to vital services.
A difference in the community - Interview with Debra Petrys is General Manager, National Programs
Friday, 12 February 2010
Business SA: Can you tell us about your career and how it led to COTA Seniors Voice?
Debra: I started my career as a nurse in 1973 in rural South Australia, eventually working as a clinical nurse consultant specialising in public health and infectious diseases. With a passion for community development, public health and aged care, I have worked in a variety of management roles at State and national levels for the past 20 years. I have also worked as a health educator in health, university and community settings. I joined COTA Seniors Voice in 2004, as I was very interested in the innovative programs that the organisation was providing. I was also interested in the potential of the expansion of services in the community for people over 50 years of age, at both a State and national level.
We Built the Country and Still Contribute
Friday, 12 February 2010
The release last week of the third Intergenerational Report raised big issues and questions, preceded as it was by a nationwide round of speeches by the Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd.
The core messages of Intergenerational Report 3 are similar to IGR1 and IGR2, and of the Productivity Commission's 2005 report on the Economic Implications of an Ageing Australia.
Survey looks at services for older residents
Thursday, 11 February 2010
MORE technology and community services could soon be on the way for older Murraylands residents.
Book now, decay later
Thursday, 11 February 2010
Residents across the Fleurieu are being forced to wait at least 17 months for routine dental care in the public system.
Port Elliot resident Rhonda Edwards has just been given an appointment after waiting for months, and said the current system needs more dentists and funding from the government.
Nest a few eggs short
Monday, 8 February 2010
AUSTRALIANS are poor savers at the best of times and even worse when it comes to their retirement.
S.A. shortchanged on beds
Monday, 8 February 2010
Out of an extra 8,140 extra residential aged care beds available nation wide, the Federal Government has only granted South Australia 237 places, despite having the oldest population in the country.
A new challenge
Wednesday, 3 February 2010
Understandably much of the emphasis in the aged care sector has been about the need to reform an ailing system so that we create a sustainable industry. There is an abundance of evidence that now demonstrates that the capital and recurrent funding arrangements need to be fixed along with the introduction of an indexation `tool' that is based on the cost of care rather than an obscure formula devised by the Federal bureaucracy years ago. Fix that and you will have fixed the challenges that confront the industry. Well not quite because there are many other challenges that the aged care needs to address.
Call for more super as population ages
Tuesday, 2 February 2010
TRADE unions and the finance industry are urging the Federal Government to increase the guaranteed superannuation contribution to help ease the financial burden of an ageing population.
Grim warning as the nation ages
Tuesday, 2 February 2010
The third Intergenerational Report, delivered yesterday by Treasurer Wayne Swan, contains grim assessments on the forces shaping the national economy during the next 40 years. However, those predictions do not necessarily point to a bad outcome, if the government of the day takes careful note of how it should react.
The greying of Australia
Tuesday, 2 February 2010
AUSTRALIANS will live longer and require more services, forcing the Government to look at ways of shoring up its tax base by encouraging later retirement.
The population is growing and greying so fast that hospitals, roads and other infrastructure will be strained to breaking point, a study of trends to 2050 has found.
Older workers boost to state
Tuesday, 2 February 2010
BEING home to the nation's oldest population is far from a burden for South Australia.
Instead, demographic and economic experts say it actually presents an opportunity to drive the state's economy and remedy the current skills shortage.
Hospitals to go Under PM's Knife
Thursday, 28 January 2010
Kevin Rudd and the States will set up a new national watchdog to scrutinise Australia's hospitals under a plan to fix the health system that stops short of a full Federal takeover.
Maggie Beer Named Senior Australian of the Year 2010
Wednesday, 27 January 2010
Minister for Ageing Justine Elliot, congratulated the 2010 Senior Australian of the Year - South Australian culinary icon Ms Maggie Beer.
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd presented Ms Beer with her award at an Australia Day eve ceremony on the lawns of Old Parliament House in Canberra this afternoon.
Ms Beer is renowned for her use of seasonal Australian produce and her internationally recognised preservative-free gourmet food.
Stranded in hospitals
Wednesday, 20 January 2010
MORE than 70 older patients are stuck in hospital as they have nowhere to go. This equates to up to seven wards full of people taking up beds.
X and Y Will Pay for Ageing Population
Wednesday, 20 January 2010
KEVIN Rudd used his first set speech of 2010 to warn Australians about the dangers of an ageing population.
Those dangers are in essence fiscal the cost burden the large cohort of baby boomers hitting retirement age will be on the budget bottom line.
Volunteer call centre keeps an eye on the elderly
Thursday, 14 January 2010
More than 2500 South Australians have been helped by the Red Cross Volunteer Call Centre over the past few days.
Surplus Hopes in Doubt as Costs Leap
Tuesday, 12 January 2010
Kevin Rudd's plan to get the budget back into surplus is being undermined by blowouts in spending on health, welfare and interest payments, making the need for future budget cuts more likely.
Surprise Funding for Elder Friendly Project
Thursday, 7 January 2010
The district councils of the Copper Coast and Yorke Peninsula have been advised the Elder Friendly Communities Project for Yorke Peninsula is to continue in 2010, receiving funding of $93,000 for a further stage.
New Retirees Make Waves
Wednesday, 6 January 2010
Australia faces a financial tsunami, with the first wave of 5.3 million baby boomers qualifying for the age pension in less than a week.
