Taking care of business (A4) (PDF) - Seniors Information Service

• Participants in the consultations talked of the shame and anxiety they,or others they know, had faced in having to put a family member into anursing home. NSW has only two Indigenous residential aged care services(in Nowra and Kempsey). Although staff from some aged care servicesundertake cultural awareness training, there is still concern in Aboriginalcommunities about the lack of cultural understanding in mainstream services.Because Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people tend to have poorer health andmore disability than non-Indigenous Australians, it may be better in the Indigenouscontext to emphasise planning ahead for possible incapacity rather than for “old age”.The information in this booklet may become relevant earlier in Indigenous communitiesthan in mainstream contexts. As one person put it: “the whole family should be talkingabout these things.”A word about language:Although this booklet is intended for the use of peopleproviding services to Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islanderpeople, it mostly addresses the Aboriginal or Torres StraitIslander person directly. This is to avoid repeated cumbersomereferences to “Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander clients”or “Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people using yourservices”. It may also mean that the book is directly accessibleto the people whom it is meant to help.Planning Ahead in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Communities