The Importance of Influenza Vaccination – Aged Care

The Governor-General was handed the report of the aged care royal commission on Friday. It will be made public in the coming week. Overlaying its considerations has been Australia’s 909 deaths from COVID-19, more than two-thirds of them (685) people in aged care facilities. It has to be recognised that COVID accounts for an extremely small share of deaths in Australia, and even deaths of senior citizens. 127,082 Australians aged 70 and over died in 2019. To date 851 in that age group have died of COVID. Some good might come from these sad deaths if they prompted us to think about where we are likely to die. Read More

Janine, a carer in regional Queensland, cares for her mother, who has a mental illness, and her elderly grandmother. It’s a round-the-clock caring role and Janine is the major support and comfort for her relatives. Janine recently experienced a very serious health event; one requiring immediate hospitalisation, treatment and ongoing monitoring. She desperately attempted to... Read More

There is often a misconception that having a “generation gap” means we cannot connect with people who are from a different time to us – whether they be younger or older. However, there are many benefits from encouraging intergenerational experiences with the elderly. It allows the older person some value and purpose in the interaction... Read More