Housing Fix for Young People Living in Nursing Homes
7 October 2013 at 10:06 am
A new “unique housing model” is set to give young people living in nursing homes another option for independent living.
The Summer Foundation’s first demonstration project comes off the back of research and consultation by the foundation, including recent findings in the report, NDIS Launch Sites: Projection of Number of Young People in Residential Aged Care which found the NDIS will be unable to fully resolve the issue of young people with disabilities in residential aged care in the short term.
Summer Foundation CEO Di Winkler was hopeful the model would be “the next generation of housing for people with disability in Australia”.
“The Summer Foundation has undertaken numerous research studies and consultations with people with disability, their families and carers,” Summer Foundation CEO Di Winkler said, “this work has highlighted the need for a greater range of housing and support models for young people in nursing homes who want real choice and control about how they live their lives.
“We are very excited to be launching our first demonstration project, and are looking forward to the replication of this model as the next generation of housing for people with disability in Australia.”
The model includes apartments that incorporate smart home and communications technology.
Using a smartphone or tablet, residents can operate features such as lighting, blinds, cooling and heating, external doors and doorbell functions, as well as contacting support staff when needed.
The housing model has six apartments for people with high support needs throughout a larger mixed private and social housing development of 59 apartments in inner Melbourne.
The Summer Foundation has purchased two of these apartments for young people with disability who are either living in aged-care nursing homes or are at risk of nursing home admission. The other four accessible apartments are for Transport Accident Commission (TAC) clients.
According to the Summer Foundation, the model will ensure “residents will be able to maximise their independence and privacy while still having access to 24-hour on-call support”.
