By Mitch Gaynor
UNTIL recently, the quickest way to make me turn the page was to put ‘aged care’ in the headline.
I knew, in theory, that the system was strained, maybe even broken, but it felt completely irrelevant.
Now I get it.
My father-in-law, 89 years young, recently made the move from Maleny, a town he loved and thrived in for more than a decade, back to Brisbane to be closer to his extended family.
Strangely enough, even though I had been part of his family for the best part of 30 years, it was only during his Maleny years that we started to spend real time talking together.
Those regular chats would inevitably solve the world’s problems (if only anyone would listen). We agreed on plenty, but also clashed on some of the most important issues: the Broncos and Gaza were regular points of contention.
The conversations continued when he moved as we covered off on golf, Trump, Test cricket (never 20/20), Albanese and grandchildren. As he nears 90 his mind is as sharp as ever. But while the mind is willing, the body has other ideas.
It’s jarring how quickly mortality makes itself felt. We did a pub crawl with him at 80. Not long after, at a Christmas party at our home, he tripped down a step and performed a miraculous commando roll before bouncing back up as if nothing had happened. Ten years later, it’s a very different story.
He became increasingly adamant he needed to leave his retirement village and move into full-time care. As children the challenge is accepting something final, but the positives are he could make this decision for himself.
All of which opened our eyes to the world of aged care: a labyrinth of bureaucratic twists, wrong turns and head scratching. Who knew it could be so hard to get someone into care in Australia?
The clock was ticking. When he decided it was time, well, it was time. But for families juggling full-time work, powers of attorney and the sheer complexity of the system, the process is anything but straightforward.
Last week we finally made the move from retirement living to full-time aged care. Thankfully, the facility is great. The staff seem genuinely caring and interested in making life as enjoyable and comfortable as possible. Being waited on all day every day? Sign me up – eventually. But the journey to get there was another matter.
And we are far from alone. Across Australia, nearly 2,500 older people who are medically ready to leave hospital remain stuck there because there are no aged care beds available.
The longest waits now average 138 days, compared to only 43 a few years ago. And while much of the public debate is about home care packages – with more than 87,000 people approved but still waiting for services – the reality is that once someone needs full-time residential care, the delays are just as devastating.
Until recently, I wouldn’t have read an article like this. Now it’s front and centre of my thinking.