What Is a Self-Managed Home Care Package—and Why It Feels So Different

A self-managed Home Care Package isn’t a product. It’s a mindset. One where your care no longer revolves around someone else’s calendar or rules. It’s care that you coordinate, at your pace, with your preferences in full view.

Here’s what that actually means:

• You still receive government-funded aged care.
• But instead of a provider assigning carers and schedules, you get to choose.
• You decide who to hire, what to spend, and when services are needed.
   

And what happens when that control is placed back in your hands? Everything changes. The care feels more natural, because it’s tailored by you. The support feels more respectful, because you invited it in—not because it was handed down.

Families across Townsville are discovering that self-managed care isn’t just more cost-effective—it’s more fulfilling. With fewer provider overheads and more direct access to the people who help you every day, your care hours stretch further. You can even choose care workers who speak your language, understand your culture, or simply make you feel comfortable in your own home.

And Support Network is never far away. We don’t interfere. We assist. We guide when asked. We make sure everything stays in line with NDIS and aged care requirements, but we do so quietly—allowing you to manage without worry, and live without interruption.

Self-managed care gives you space to be yourself. That, above all, is what makes it different.

Freedom to Choose the Right Carers for Your Life

No two lives look the same. So why should care ever be uniform? That’s the beauty of self-managing your Home Care Package in Townsville—you don’t have to settle for whoever’s available or whoever’s assigned. You take your time. You speak to people. You choose care workers who understand you—not just your needs, but your preferences, your culture, your rhythms, even your silences.

We’ve seen firsthand how everything shifts when people have the power to build their own care team. And we don’t stand in the way of that. Instead, we provide the platform, the systems, and the quiet support to make sure you can hire the right people and stay fully in control. Below is just a glimpse of the many ways you can shape your care—with services chosen by you, and delivered by professionals who care as deeply as you do.

Home Care

Home is more than a place. It’s your safe space, your comfort, your story. The carers you bring in should treat it that way—with respect and gentle understanding. Our dedicated home care workers step in without taking over. Whether it’s helping with mobility, preparing your meals the way you like them, or simply offering a hand with tasks that are getting harder, they make sure you feel safe, not sidelined.

Daily Living

The little things are often the biggest. Brushing your hair. Laying out your clothes. Pouring your tea just the way you’ve always liked it. Our care workers approach these daily rituals with patience and presence. You decide who helps you through your day, and you can change it anytime. That freedom makes all the difference.

Domestic Assistance

A clean, calm space can ease the mind. Our carers don’t just sweep and scrub—they notice. They take time to understand how you like things done, from how your clothes are folded to how your fridge is arranged. It’s not just about ticking chores off a list—it’s about creating ease in your day.

24 Hour Care

Some needs don’t clock off at 5pm. For individuals requiring round-the-clock support, our 24-hour care teams are a lifeline. Self-managing allows you to build a rotating team you trust—people who don’t just show up, but stay present, alert, and emotionally attuned throughout every shift.

Personal Care

Showering, dressing, grooming—these are intimate moments that deserve care and dignity. That’s why having the freedom to choose a personal carer you feel safe with is so important. Our workers are discreet, gentle, and trained to support without rushing or invading.

Overnight Care

Rest doesn’t come easily when you're worried about falls, wandering, or health episodes in the middle of the night. With overnight care, your chosen carer is there—quietly, reliably, and ready to respond. Whether it’s a sleepover shift or active night support, you stay in control of who provides it.

Disability Care

Disability care should never feel clinical. It should feel empowering. Our carers work alongside you, not above you—helping you move through the day with confidence and calm. From mobility assistance to personal support, you choose someone who understands not just your needs, but your goals.

Disability Support

Sometimes, support goes beyond the physical. It’s about encouraging independence, providing emotional consistency, and helping you live the life you want. Whether it's help at home or out in the community, our carers walk with you—without pushing, rushing, or assuming. You decide how support should feel.

Complex Care

Health conditions may be complex, but your care doesn’t have to be. With self-management, you can bring in professionals trained in catheter care, PEG feeding, ventilation, and more—without needing to go through a big system every time your needs evolve. We help ensure everything stays compliant behind the scenes, so you can focus on living, not explaining.

High Care

There are times when higher-level support becomes part of daily life. That doesn’t mean you lose the right to choose who provides it. With high care, you can still select a team that’s skilled, sensitive, and fully across your situation. The result? Care that’s not just competent—but deeply comforting.

Social and Community Participation

Getting out and about shouldn't feel like a mission. Whether it’s attending a local event in Townsville, visiting the markets, joining a group activity, or just catching up with mates—our support workers make it easier. You choose someone who makes you feel confident and uplifted while you stay connected to the world outside your home.

Behaviour Support

Behaviour support isn’t about control—it’s about compassion. Whether it’s for someone living with cognitive challenges, emotional distress, or other conditions that impact behaviour, our trained carers offer stability and understanding. You decide who has the right approach, the right attitude, and the patience to support gently.

Dedicated Support for Every Health Condition and Need

When health conditions shift the course of daily life, the right kind of care can bring back steadiness, comfort, and dignity. But here’s the thing—real support doesn’t come from checklists. It comes from people who get it. People who’ve worked with these conditions before. People who are patient when you’re slow to speak, gentle when you’re tired, and strong when you need someone to lean on.

You don’t just get to choose who supports you—you get to choose someone who truly understands what you’re living with. And we help you do that, quietly in the background, making sure your self-managed package is working exactly how it should. Here’s how condition-specific support can be tailored around you.

Arthritis Care

Living with arthritis often means working around stiffness, pain, and unpredictable days. It takes more than just physical help—it takes carers who recognise the slow mornings, the need for gentle pacing, and the importance of preserving movement without rushing it. The carers you choose can provide that balance, bringing kindness and skill to every task, from opening jars to helping you dress with less strain.

Autism Care

Autism care isn’t about fitting into systems—it’s about creating space that feels safe, understood, and accepting. Whether support is needed for a child, teen, or adult, having a carer who truly respects routine, sensory preferences, and communication styles can make all the difference. With self-management, families in Townsville can choose someone with the right personality, background, and calm presence—because chemistry matters just as much as credentials.

Cancer Care

A cancer journey brings a mix of strength, vulnerability, and exhaustion. It doesn’t come with a script. Carers offering cancer support must be responsive—one day you might want to talk, the next day you might need rest. Whether it’s helping with medication reminders, personal care, or just keeping the home environment calm and clean, your chosen carer walks through it all with you, gently and consistently.

Epilepsy Care

Epilepsy support means being prepared, not panicked. It’s about having someone nearby who knows what to do if a seizure occurs and who can provide ongoing reassurance in between. With self-managed care, you can select a carer who’s trained in seizure response, but also someone who helps you feel at ease living your life freely—not on edge or fearful.

Heart Disease Care

Heart disease doesn’t always show itself—but its care requires constant awareness. Support workers trained in this space help manage fatigue, medication, mobility, and post-surgical needs without overstepping. Whether it’s a slow walk in the garden or keeping meals heart-healthy, your carer understands the pace that works for you and helps you protect your energy, every day.

Huntington's Disease Care

With Huntington’s, each stage brings its own changes. Muscle movements. Cognitive shifts. Mood swings. A rotating team doesn’t help here. What helps is consistency. With a self-managed model, you choose carers who stay. Who understand the progression. Who don’t just know what to do—but know you over time. That familiarity is everything.

Mental Health

Mental health support isn’t about solving things. It’s about showing up, staying grounded, and creating space where there’s no judgement. Whether it’s anxiety, depression, bipolar, or trauma recovery, you need a carer who can sit with silence, listen when words come slowly, and notice when something’s not quite right. That’s not something a system assigns—it’s someone you choose, and trust to walk that road with you.

Motor Neurone Disease Care

MND care often starts with small adjustments—but it can become more involved over time. Choosing a care worker who’s familiar with the changing needs of this condition brings reassurance. From helping with transfers to managing communication aids, your team should grow with your journey. And through Support Network, they can—on your terms.

Muscular Dystrophy

Supporting someone with muscular dystrophy isn’t just about mobility. It’s about preserving autonomy for as long as possible, and doing so with respect. You decide who assists you—someone who helps without hovering, encourages without pushing, and supports strength in every form it shows up.

Out of Hospital Care

Coming home from hospital can be disorienting. Things are supposed to go “back to normal,” but they rarely do right away. Out of hospital care should bridge that gap with ease. You might need temporary support, wound care, medication management, or someone to keep an eye on your progress. With self-management, you’re not left scrambling—you line up the right person in advance, ready to help you settle in gently.

Parkinson’s Disease Care

Parkinson’s brings subtle challenges—tremors, stiffness, balance, and mood changes. It helps when your carer already understands that. Someone who gives you time to move, listens through the softening voice, and respects your need for routine. Choosing someone familiar with Parkinson’s care ensures the support feels natural, not forced.

Palliative Care

End-of-life support is deeply personal. It requires grace, presence, and incredible sensitivity. The carers chosen here need to be more than skilled—they need to be kind. Whether you want someone to support your loved one through the night, manage comfort measures, or simply be there in silence, you should have the choice. And self-managed care gives you that—down to every small detail.

Dementia Care

Dementia care is about building familiarity and protecting dignity—even when memory starts to slip away. You can choose someone who’s not just trained in cognitive decline, but who brings a soft voice, a patient heart, and the consistency that helps reduce confusion and fear. This kind of care is only possible when the same faces return—and with self-management, that’s entirely up to you.

Support Network's Platform: Making Self-Management Simple

When you choose to self-manage, you’re not choosing complexity—you’re choosing clarity. But that clarity only comes when the tools in your hands actually work for you. That’s exactly what we built our platform around. It’s not a maze of forms or a pile of buttons—it’s a place that puts you back in charge, with everything made as simple and stress-free as possible.

Need to hire a care worker? You can post a job directly from your dashboard. Whether you’re looking for someone to help with overnight care, daily tasks, or complex support, it takes only a few clicks to write what you need, shortlist carers, and start connecting.

Have a carer already? Our system lets them submit timesheets with complete visibility. You can review and approve timesheets instantly—no paperwork, no back-and-forth, no confusion about who worked when.

Invoices can often become the most overwhelming part of the process. That’s why we’ve made it easy to manage invoices inside the platform. Everything’s there in one place, easy to track, easy to understand. And you’ll always know exactly how much of your package is being used—and where it’s going.

Most importantly, you’ll never be left wondering where your budget stands. Our platform gives you real-time access to your care funds. You can monitor your budget at any time. Every expense is recorded, every detail is transparent, and every dollar is accounted for.

There are no hidden surprises. Just visibility. Control. And peace of mind.

We believe that independence should feel easy. That’s why our platform was built not for administrators, but for real people—for daughters helping their parents, for partners trying to stay organised, for individuals trying to live well with support that makes sense.

We handle the background noise. You stay focused on life.

Benefits of Self-Managing Your Home Care Package

• Personal ChoiceChoose who walks into your home. Build a team that listens, respects, and understands you. No assignments—just your voice, your call.
• Budget ControlSee where every dollar goes. Make the decisions that suit your life, not someone else’s margins.
• Lower Fees, More Care HoursLess goes to provider costs. More goes into hands-on care. You feel the difference—not just in your wallet, but in your daily support.
• Choose Culturally Matched CarersFind someone who speaks your language—literally or emotionally. Cultural understanding leads to deeper, more comfortable care.
• Transparency at Every StepNo fog. No fine print. Just clear updates, real numbers, and total visibility—from your budget to your services.
• Backed by a Trusted NDIS ProviderWhile you lead the way, we keep things steady in the background. Your care is compliant, your funds are protected, and your choices are fully supported.

Contact Us

If you're looking for aged care services that don’t feel cold or clinical—something more personal, something that makes room for real life—then we’re here for that. Whether you’re trying to figure out your package level, worried about high-level care needs, or simply need help with basic care, we listen first.

Support Network is more than a service provider. We're here to help you make sense of it all. From navigating government funding to creating a care plan that suits your routine, our aged care experts walk beside you, not ahead of you.

If you're ready to talk—about support, choices, or just where to begin—reach out. We'll help you find the right care, with the right people, at the right time.