AUSTRALIA | St Bart's in Perth announced it will expand its services to include more residents amid a major transformation for the facility.
The Australian Government is strengthening access to quality residential aged care in Perth, working alongside St Bartholomew’s House Inc (St Bart’s) to expand its specialised aged care services to include older women with a history of homelessness.
Building on a strong partnership model, the federal government is putting forward AUD 30 million to help build a new 80-bed residential aged care home for older Australians who are homeless or at risk of homelessness in East Perth.
With St Bart’s contributing AUD 16 million, this AUD 46 million project will build a world-class home that provides specialised care to even more older Australians.
The new aged care home on Brown Street will feature 80 single ensuite rooms across seven levels, dedicated floors for male and female residents, on-site access to clinical and allied health professionals, and culturally inclusive spaces, including a yarning circle and outdoor areas.
This announcement, funded through the Aged Care Capital Assistance Program (ACCAP) means the program has now funded 146 projects providing a total of AUD 651 million in infrastructure grants to increase access to quality aged care services for older Australians who have specialised needs or live outside of major cities.
This announcement marks the ninth specialist aged care project for older people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness to be funded by ACCAP nationally.
The Australian Government continues to invest in aged care infrastructure grant funding at unprecedented levels and funding initiatives such as this will bring us closer to delivering an aged care system one that every Australian can be truly proud of.
“Every older Western Australian deserves to age with dignity in a safe and caring place that they can be proud to call home. In partnership with St Barts, Labor is delivering better care for countless older Western Australians who otherwise may not have aged comfortably,” said Sam Rae, Minister for Aged Care.
“This announcement will allow St Bart’s to deliver even more specialised care to those that need it most in Perth. Every new bed the Albanese Government funds will help take pressure off the hospital system in WA and transition more older Western Australians into more appropriate care sooner.”
Federal Member for Perth, Patrick Gorman, said the people of Perth want every Western Australian to be looked after in their old age, and the most vulnerable community members are no exception.
“This investment in St Bart’s will enable our city to keep older people from sleeping rough, and will also ease pressure on our local hospitals like Royal Perth Hospital,” said Gorman.
“This is another significant investment by the Albanese Government in our local community and one which will continue to take pressure off WA hospitals.”
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