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New Zealand: Taranaki's Elderly

Have Support to Stay Home

 

By LYN HUMPHREYS, Daily News

 

 June 10, 2003

The New Plymouth-based non-profit private organisation was responding to Minister for Senior Citizens Ruth Dyson's recent comments to New Plymouth Grey Power.

Ms Dyson said New Zealand's over-65s were not being offered services which provided them with the essential link between their homes and their communities.

But a trial project in the Waikato and Dunedin would soon be made available throughout the country to allow those who were eligible to have fully-subsidised home support if they did not want to go into a rest home, Ms Dyson said.

Access Ability (AA) national chief executive Pip Nicholls, New Plymouth, said this was already happening successfully in Taranaki.

"What we do is assess the need and provide support. If there's a person out there who wants to seriously stay in their home we would do whatever it takes to support that choice, given consideration to their safety."

A total of $80,000 of the AA budget was spent on providing individual and innovative services, Ms Nicholls said.

AA contracted specifically through Friends Plus to carry out additional tasks such as shopping and collecting their wood.

There was also a "tuck-in" service available where a support person visited the home and ensured basic security was seen to, including evening medication was taken, appliances turned off and doors locked.

"The things that the children would see to if they were in Taranaki, but they may not be able to do because they are living in Wellington," Ms Nicholls said.

Access Ability has been in New Plymouth since 1997 and has branches in Auckland, Wanganui and Dunedin.


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