Aged Care Services Shoalhaven

Our approach to in‑home aged care is simple: keep things familiar, stay nearby, and ensure that every part of support feels human. We do this through the Support at Home program, tailoring home care packages to meet each person’s needs, never overwhelming, always empowering. Whether it’s help with daily routines or someone to check in on your well-being, the goal is always the same: protect your independence, respect your pace, and offer gentle, effective care that fits right into your everyday life.

We believe ageing shouldn’t mean adjusting to a new environment, it should mean adjusting the support around you. That’s what we’re here for.

Age at Home in Shoalhaven, on Your Terms

In Shoalhaven, ageing at home is no longer wishful thinking; it's a supported, realistic choice. Support Network builds its services around that belief. The idea isn’t just to stay at home, but to age with comfort, stability, and professional guidance in the same home where life has unfolded over the years.

From the start, we sit down to understand what matters to you. A health professional may carry out an assessment, but it’s not clinical or cold it’s conversational. We listen. We observe. We take note of what your week looks like and what you’d like it to look like. That’s where your plan begins.

Once in place, your support workers trained, warm, and part of your local community step in. They don’t rush tasks; they support your rhythm. With the help of allied health professionals, your mobility, safety, and strength can be improved without losing the freedom you value. If needed, we bring in specialist clinicians or loop in your general practitioner, making sure everyone involved is on the same page.

This type of care helps ease the emotional toll that can come with growing older. Studies show that people who remain in familiar surroundings have better emotional balance and reduced instances of loneliness. And it makes sense when routines stay intact, and support is delivered respectfully, people thrive.

Aging shouldn’t feel like losing pieces of your identity. In Shoalhaven, we help you hold on to all of it: your home, your pace, your say.

Why Shoalhaven Families Choose Professional Home Care

The decision to move a loved one into residential care is never easy. For many families in Shoalhaven, that conversation carries a weight that’s hard to describe. The idea of disrupting someone’s home life uprooting their routines, their pets, their garden, their neighbours feels too big.

That’s why home care services are becoming the preferred option. With Support Network, families don’t have to choose between safety and comfort. Our tailored home care packages are built around the person, not just their needs. It means meals in their own kitchen, medication reminders with their own clock on the wall, and conversations that don’t feel like appointments.

Picture this: an older gentleman who once ran the local hardware store now needs help with showering and medication. His daughter is juggling work and parenting, trying to do it all. Instead of placing him in care, the family works with us. A carer visits each morning. His GP stays involved. A physiotherapist comes by weekly. The daughter, instead of burning out, gets to enjoy breakfast chats with her dad on weekends. It’s still his life just better supported.

Our service providers don’t just tick boxes. They’re trained to notice the little things. And our customer service team? They don’t hide behind menus or wait times. They know your name, and they’re here to make care feel accessible, not complicated.

Our Shoalhaven Care Philosophy

Every service we offer in Shoalhaven is rooted in a simple belief: people come first. That belief shapes not just what we do, but how we do it.

At Support Network, we collaborate with not-for-profit organisations, local care teams, and other community partners who know the area well and care deeply about it. We’re not flying in from outside, we're already here, working beside those who’ve been helping this community for years.

Our approach to care planning is quiet, respectful, and values-led. There are no sales pitches. No fixed formulas. We sit with families and clients and shape the plan around their voice, not ours. There’s transparency at every stage. No hidden fees, no fine print. If a person’s needs change, we adjust without fuss, and always with dignity at the centre.

And we don’t just serve older Australians, we learn from them. Each person we support in Shoalhaven brings a story, a rhythm, a set of values that deserve to stay intact. We take those seriously. That’s why we never lead with what we can do, we start by asking what you want to keep doing.

We’re here for those who want care to feel like continuity, not change. For those who believe ageing is not a problem to fix, but a life stage to honour.

What We Can Do for You in Shoalhaven

Every household keeps its own rhythm. Instead of forcing a one-size-fits-all plan, Support Network offers a menu you can dip into as needs shift. Take one service, combine a few, swap them out later whatever keeps life moving smoothly at home.

• Personal & Clinical Care A registered nurse drops in for wound checks, blood-pressure readings, or that fortnightly medication review your GP requested. If memory lapses raise safety concerns, we coordinate with local memory-support units so care flows between home and specialised centres without confusion. Nursing staff work quietly in the background, leaving the living room just as they found it.
• Domestic Help & Meal Preparation A tidy kitchen and a warm meal make a day feel normal. Our team handles washing, ironing, light gardening, or that once-a-week big shop. They’ll even batch-cook stews or freeze single-serve meals whichever suits your appetite and storage space.
• Nursing & Allied-Health Visits A physiotherapist guiding gentle balance drills in the lounge; a podiatrist checking circulation; an occupational therapist tweaking chair heights so you stand up safely. These allied health professionals arrive on schedule, write clear notes for your health professional team, and keep communication honest and jargon-free.
• Dementia & Cognitive Support Dementia care isn’t only about memory loss it’s about preserving identity. We use familiar music, favourite recipes, and well-loved routines to anchor each day. Qualified carers step in before confusion spirals, offering patient redirection rather than correction.
• Palliative & End-of-Life Care When comfort becomes the goal, our palliative team tunes into tiny details a favourite blanket turned just right, soft lighting in the hallway at night. End-of-life care sits alongside spiritual or cultural needs, and family voices stay central to every decision.
• Day & Overnight Respite Even the most devoted relatives need rest. A trained support worker can cover an afternoon of appointments or an entire weekend. They follow the existing care plan down to the preferred mug for morning tea so continuity isn’t broken while family members recharge.
• Social Outings & Transport From a quick lift to the podiatrist to a full afternoon at the local men’s shed, our drivers help clients keep friendships alive. Community members often wave when our branded vehicles pull up; it's a small reminder that you’re still part of town life.
• Home Modifications & Safety Checks Simple changes grab rails, brighter hallway bulbs, a slip-resistant ramp can extend independent living by years. We arrange qualified tradespeople, supervise the work, and run a final safety sweep so you (and your family) sleep easier.

Funding Options for In-Home Care in Shoalhaven

Paying for care shouldn’t feel like decoding a rulebook. Our role is to untangle government guidelines, compare options, and lay out every cost before you sign anything. Below are the main pathways; we’ll walk you through each step.

Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP)

Great for lower-level help a cleaner once a week, transport to physiotherapy, or gentle exercise classes. We confirm eligibility, complete the My Aged Care referral, and schedule services so you see benefits fast. If needs grow, we help you graduate smoothly to the next funding tier rather than starting again from scratch.

Home Care Packages (HCP)

Four package levels fund everything from basic domestic help to complex clinical care. Paperwork can feel endless; we shrink it into plain language, track approval timeframes, and build a plan that spends funds wisely. You keep control of providers, while we manage the complexity behind the scenes.

Support at Home Program (Launching 1 Nov 2025)

The government is merging CHSP and HCP into a single system. While headlines focus on change, our priority is stability. We map how your current services translate, flag any gaps, and sit in on family meetings so no question goes unanswered when the switch flips later this year.

Fee Clarity & Financial Guidance

Government funding often covers the lion’s share, yet income-tested fees, co-payments, or one-off equipment costs can catch families off guard. We list every potential out-of-pocket expense before services start, suggest concessions where possible, and keep monthly statements transparent, no surprise totals, ever.

From checking Commonwealth Home Support Programme eligibility to recalculating income-tested fees after a pension review, Support Network stays on the paperwork so you can stay on the life you love.

How Our Four-Step Care Process Works in Shoalhaven

1. Initial Assessment – The first conversation is never hurried. We visit, sit at the kitchen table, and map out daily routines, what already works and what is becoming difficult. From there we organise the formal ACAT evaluation on your behalf, guiding you through every form so the Australian Government sees the full picture, not just the paperwork.

2. Care-Plan Development – With assessment results in hand, we draft a living document rather than a rigid schedule. Your GP, an allied-health clinician, perhaps a pharmacist whoever knows your health best adds practical advice. You decide the pace; we fit support around it. This is where goals live: staying mobile for the weekly craft market, walking the dog without worry, cooking Sunday lunch unaided.

3. Implementation – Services begin gently. The same few faces turn up, on time, every time. A registered nurse checks the wound on your shin; a support worker prepares lunch while talking through tomorrow’s plan; the physio slips in later for balance exercises. Routines are kept familiar so care feels like continuity, not intrusion.

4. Ongoing Review – Life changes, so the care plan must breathe. After a hospital visit or even a new medication, we meet again, tweak tasks, and update goals. Nothing is locked away in a binder; the plan remains open on your dining-room shelf, ready for the next chapter.

Quality & Safety You Can Trust in Shoalhaven

Reassurance starts with people. Every staff member whether nurse, gardener, or driver passes a national security check and comprehensive reference screening. Registered nurses meet the competency standards set out in the Aged Care Act; support workers complete accredited training and ongoing refreshers on safe-manual handling, infection control, and dementia communication.

Compliance is more than ticking regulations. We audit our own practices every quarter and invite independent bodies to test them. Data is encrypted end-to-end; our Privacy Policy details exactly who can see your file (and who can’t). Medication charts are double-signed; home-hazard reports are logged and followed up. If something feels off, families call a dedicated safety line that bypasses reception and goes straight to the clinical lead.

Trust, ultimately, is earned each time we lock the front door on the way out and text to confirm the client is settled and comfortable. It’s in small acts, repeated daily, that our promise of reliable care becomes real.

Smart Care Technology at Home in Shoalhaven

Technology should amplify human care, not replace it. We weave unobtrusive tools into daily routines so safety grows while independence stays intact.

• Fall-Detection Devices – Lightweight sensors sit on a belt or wristband and send an instant alert to family, to our on-call nurse if a sudden drop is detected.
• Telehealth Services – Video links mean your physiotherapist can adjust an exercise plan after watching a single leg-lift, saving a trip across town.
• Medication Reminders & Monitoring – A countertop dispenser flashes and speaks when it’s time for tablets, then records whether the dose was taken. You can check the log from your phone while you’re at work.
• Remote Health Monitoring – Blood-pressure cuffs and pulse-ox devices upload readings to a secure dashboard. Abnormal trends trigger a call from the clinical team before they become hospital visits.
• Appointment Scheduling Tools – A shared digital calendar keeps carers, family, and health professionals aligned, so no-one doubles up or leaves a day uncovered.

Each device is optional. If technology feels intrusive, we dial it back; if it feels liberating, we add more. The aim is simple: lift quality of life while keeping hearts and homes human.

Ready to Arrange Care in Shoalhaven?

Start with a free, no-pressure consultation on the phone, online, or over a cup of tea at home. We’ll map out needs, explain funding, and hand you plain-English guides to local caregiver resources. From there, our Shoalhaven team sets up the assessment, organises services, and stays just one call away. Public events, outreach talks, and community stalls run year-round, so drop by and chat anytime. Ready when you are.