Restorative Care Clinical Guidelines for Support at Home Program

"Restorative care guidelines are essential for enhancing the Support at Home Program, empowering individuals to regain independence and improve their quality of life. By promoting evidence-based practices, these guidelines will support the delivery of personalised and effective care and enable older people to enjoy living at home for longer."

— Dr Claire Gough

The purpose of restorative care is support individuals to regain function and enable them to live independently in their own homes for as long as possible.

Restorative care is usually directed by allied health professionals, however, carers, family and other individuals are often included to support this approach in the community.

Restorative care is defined as, ‘An approach used to delay a person’s need for high level residential care. Programs are usually short-term and less intensive, costly and complex than rehabilitation programs and often take place in the community.’ (Poulos & Poulos 2019).

Goal

To develop Restorative Care Clinical Guidelines for the Support at Home Program.

Aims

This project aims to develop evidence-based clinical guidelines to ensure the Support at Home Program:

Improves functional care outcomes for older people
Supports carers and professionals to deliver personalised restorative care interventions
Facilitates consistent care delivery

This project aims to Develop Individual Assessment Tools to identify triggers for potential referral to the restorative care pathways.

Grant Details

Australian Government, Department of Health and Aged Care

Chief Investigator: Professor Stacey George

Flinders lead(s): Dr Claire Gough

Commenced 2024

Researchers

From Flinders

Stacey George
Kate Laver
Elsa Dent
Claire Gough
Heather Block
Xing Lee
Shenelle Fernando
Annabelle Law

Tools and Resources

Restorative Care Surveys

For those delivering care

Have your voice heard- How can restorative care guidelines support you to deliver care?

This survey aims to gather valuable feedback from professionals and stakeholders with experience in restorative care to inform the development of clinical guidelines for the new Support at Home (SAH) program. The input will help ensure that these guidelines are practical, relevant, and tailored to effectively support multidisciplinary in-home care, aiming to slow functional decline and improve the well-being of older adults.

Access here

For assessors (using the Integrated Assessment Tool (IAT))

How can we use the IAT to identify who might benefit from the restorative care pathway?

This survey aims to gather insights from professionals experienced with the Integrated Assessment Tool (IAT) to help identify individuals who could benefit from restorative care within the Support at Home (SAH) program. The feedback will contribute to the development of clinical guidelines that inform effective, multidisciplinary in-home care designed to delay functional decline and enhance the quality of life for older adults.

Access here