Published 22nd July 2021
Due to the ongoing lockdown in New South Wales, the Department of Health has amended its service delivery advice to providers operating in the Greater Sydney region. The Commonwealth Department of Health expects all aged care services to continue for the duration of the lockdown where it is safe to do so. For the purposes of the Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP), essential services include: Meals (delivered to the home only); Transport (trips to essential medical appointments only); Domestic Assistance (general house cleaning, delivery of groceries and other essential shopping only); Nursing; Personal Care; Home Maintenance (e.g. gardening and repairs to ensure health, safety and security of the premises or clients) Home Modifications (to ensure the health and safety of clients) Goods, Equipment and Assistive Technology (to ensure the health and safety of clients) Allied Health and Therapy Services (e.g. physiotherapy, podiatry, occupational therapy etc); Social Support (phone and online-based services only). Please notify your Community Grants Hub Funding Arrangement Manager (FAM) if you have to suspend the delivery of essential services as soon as possible. The Department of Health has also been made aware of some concerns about the public health guidance released by the NSW State Government with regards to who qualifies as an authorised worker. Under the NSW public health guidance published on 18 July 2021, authorised workers include a person employed or engaged to provide services to persons with disability or vulnerable persons. For the purposes of this program, a frail and aged person requiring CHSP or Home Care Package support qualifies as a vulnerable person. All service providers are reminded that flexibility provisions have been relaxed to enable providers to re-allocate up to 100 per cent of their grant funding between their funded activities and aged care planning regions to help meet targeted demand for essential services, retain and expand key workforce and cover the cost of personal protective equipment (PPE). Service providers that require additional financial support during this period are encouraged to apply for additional funding through the CHSP Emergency Support for COVID-19 Ad Hoc Funding Round. A copy of the Grant Opportunity Guidelines for this funding round can be found on GrantConnect. Note flexibility provisions must be fully utilised before applying for additional funding through the CHSP Emergency Support for COVID-19 funding round. Information and advice on the correct use of PPE in an aged care context can be found on the Department’s website including: Guidance and training on how masks should be worn; General resources for the health workforce on the correct use of PPE; COVID-19 guidelines for infection prevention and control in residential aged care homes; and Online COVID-19 infection control training. Additional training modules specifically designed for an aged care context (including advice on identifying a COVID-19 outbreak, using PPE and implementing infection control and appropriate cleaning and waste disposal measures) are also available. Note you will need to register before accessing this training if you have not already done so. CHSP service providers must use their own supply of masks and other PPE first and may then contact to request extra supply as needed. All requests for PPE, including masks, will be assessed on a case by case basis. If your request is successful, your State Government will issue you with additional PPE. For more information about emergency provisions and support available to CHSP providers during the COVID-19 pandemic, please carefully review the fact sheets published on the Department’s website including: The CHSP Emergency Support for COVID-19 Fact Sheet; The CHSP Emergency Flexibility Provisions Fact Sheet; Other Supports and Program Initiatives for CHSP Service Providers Fact Sheet; The CHSP Information for Clients, Families and Carers Fact Sheet. For more information about the NSW Lockdown and COVID-19 response, please review the NSW State Government COVID-19 response website.
Due to the ongoing lockdown in New South Wales, the Department of Health has amended its service delivery advice to providers operating in the Greater Sydney region.
The Commonwealth Department of Health expects all aged care services to continue for the duration of the lockdown where it is safe to do so. For the purposes of the Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP), essential services include:
Please notify your Community Grants Hub Funding Arrangement Manager (FAM) if you have to suspend the delivery of essential services as soon as possible.
The Department of Health has also been made aware of some concerns about the public health guidance released by the NSW State Government with regards to who qualifies as an authorised worker. Under the NSW public health guidance published on 18 July 2021, authorised workers include a person employed or engaged to provide services to persons with disability or vulnerable persons. For the purposes of this program, a frail and aged person requiring CHSP or Home Care Package support qualifies as a vulnerable person.
All service providers are reminded that flexibility provisions have been relaxed to enable providers to re-allocate up to 100 per cent of their grant funding between their funded activities and aged care planning regions to help meet targeted demand for essential services, retain and expand key workforce and cover the cost of personal protective equipment (PPE). Service providers that require additional financial support during this period are encouraged to apply for additional funding through the CHSP Emergency Support for COVID-19 Ad Hoc Funding Round. A copy of the Grant Opportunity Guidelines for this funding round can be found on GrantConnect. Note flexibility provisions must be fully utilised before applying for additional funding through the CHSP Emergency Support for COVID-19 funding round.
Information and advice on the correct use of PPE in an aged care context can be found on the Department’s website including:
Additional training modules specifically designed for an aged care context (including advice on identifying a COVID-19 outbreak, using PPE and implementing infection control and appropriate cleaning and waste disposal measures) are also available. Note you will need to register before accessing this training if you have not already done so.
CHSP service providers must use their own supply of masks and other PPE first and may then contact to request extra supply as needed. All requests for PPE, including masks, will be assessed on a case by case basis. If your request is successful, your State Government will issue you with additional PPE.
For more information about emergency provisions and support available to CHSP providers during the COVID-19 pandemic, please carefully review the fact sheets published on the Department’s website including:
For more information about the NSW Lockdown and COVID-19 response, please review the NSW State Government COVID-19 response website.
Source:Unknown Author, 2021, Department of Health (https://www.health.gov.au/)
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