Better health and ageing for all Australians

Consumer Directed Care

Consumer directed care in Australian Government funded respite care

Fact Sheet - Consumer directed care in Australian Government funded respite care

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As part of its continuing commitment to providing frail, older Australians with responsive, client-centered community care services, the Australian Government is funding consumer directed care in community care programs.

Consumer Directed Care will focus on respite care provided under the National Respite for Carers Program (NRCP), and services provided under the Government’s packaged care programs.

Consumer Directed Respite Care

In 2010-11, under Consumer Directed Respite Care (CDRC), selected Commonwealth Respite and Carelink Centres from across Australia were each funded to provide up to 20 carers with their own individualised CDRC Package. In total there were 200 CDRC Packages allocated across Australia.

In 2011-12, The Australian Government is funding an additional 200 CDRC packages across Australia. Existing Commonwealth Respite and Carelink Centres were invited to apply for CDRC places on 12 March 2011 for allocation through an Invitation to Apply process. As a result of this process, the Australian Government now funds a total of 31 Commonwealth Respite and Carelink Centres to deliver CDRC packages under NRCP.

A list of Commonwealth Respite and Carelink Centres which have an allocation of CDRC places can be found at the Department of Health and Ageing website List of Successful CDRC Centres

Consumer Directed Care Packaged Care

In 2010-11, the Government also funded 500 Consumer Directed Care (CDC) places under the Innovative Pool Program. The 500 places align with existing Community Aged Care Packages, and Extended Aged Care at Home and Extended Aged Care at Home Dementia packages.

In 2011-12, the Government is funding a further 500 CDC places.

Further information about Consumer Directed Care in packaged care is available at: www.health.gov.au/cdc

What’s the objective of Consumer Directed Respite Care?

The objectives are to:
    • showcase a consumer directed approach to respite care;
    • explore more effective ways of empowering carers by allowing them – to the extent they are capable and wish to do so – to actively choose the respite services they receive, including with respect to who delivers the respite care and when; and
    • provide an opportunity to conduct research into consumer directed care in Australian Government funded community care programs.
CDRC places are currently funded until 30 June 2012. The future of any further CDRC funding and places is yet to be decided. Future Government policy decisions will take into account the evaluation of the Consumer Directed Respite Care initiative, currently being undertaken by KPMG, on behalf of the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing, together with the Government's response to the Productivity Commission Report Caring for Older Australians.

How do the Consumer Directed Respite Care Packages work?

An annual budget of $4,200, to be held and administered by the Commonwealth Respite and Carelink Centre (Centre), is allocated for each participating carer. Participating carers are provided with information regarding all respite services available. Carers are able to direct the Centre to spend their respite budget on the respite services of his or her choice. Top of page

How are carers able to direct the services they receive under their Consumer Directed Respite Care Package?

Participating carers are able to control the expenditure of their individual respite budget through:
    • active involvement in the design of an agreed respite plan, including the identification of appropriate services (this may involve proactively identifying service providers with which the Centre does not have an existing relationship);
    • choosing which services they receive and when;
    • being responsible for authorising each item of budget expenditure; and
    • in partnership with the Centre, negotiating with brokered service providers to ensure that the services being delivered meet the carer’s own particular needs.

Target group

The target groups for the CDRC Packages will be the carers of frail, older people (65 years or over, or 50 and over for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people) and the carers of people with dementia.

What’s on offer?

Participating Centres will each receive up to $4,200 per CDRC place, as well as $2,000 per place to cover expenses associated with the administration of each respite package's budget, client management, and participation in the evaluation. This funding is paid to the Centres on a monthly basis.

What will be the Centres’ role in Consumer Directed Respite Care?

Participating Centres will be responsible for:

Selection of participating carers

Centres are responsible for selecting carers from their region who will participate in CDRC, allocating the CDRC Packages on the basis of prospective carers’ relative needs and their suitability to participate.

Care assessment and planning

Centres are responsible for undertaking an assessment of each participating carer’s particular needs, and working with the carer to develop an agreed individual respite plan.

As part of this process, the Centre needs to provide information about the services available in their local region, and ensure that participating carers are fully aware of the possible uses of their individual budgets.

Administration of each package’s budget

The Centres administer the budget for each package, and also work with the carer to arrange and coordinate the provision of respite services. This includes: Top of page
  • brokering services as directed by the carer (and within the limits of the package budget);
  • making payments from the package budget as authorised by the carer;
  • providing the carer with a monthly account balance, listing yearly expenditure to date and funds remaining; and
  • where necessary, liaising with brokered service providers in partnership with the carer (to, for example, assist the carer negotiate the provision of in-home respite at a time that suits them).

Ensuring services are delivered in a manner consistent with the relevant Program Guidelines

The CDRC Packages will operate under the NRCP. As such, Centres need to ensure that services are delivered in accordance with the terms and requirements of the Consumer Directed Respite Care Funding Agreements and are also required to substantially comply with the Administrative and Program Guidelines for Respite Services funded under the National Respite for Carers Program (NRCP) and the Operational Manual for the Commonwealth Respite and Carelink Centres.

Flexible service delivery

Centres will need to be flexible in their approach to assisting CDRC package recipients. This could include, for instance, assisting participating carers access services from respite providers with which the Centre does not have an existing relationship.

Participation in evaluation activities

KPMG, on behalf of the Department of Health and Ageing is conducting an in-depth evaluation of CDRC Packages. This evaluation is exploring the effectiveness of the packages in meeting carers’ needs, their operation, and the potential for implementing the CDC model more broadly across Australian Government community care programs.

In order to assist the evaluation, Centres are expected to participate in evaluation activities, which may include a range of reporting activities, facilitating evaluator access to package recipients, and participation in focus groups, interviews or telephone surveys.

How long will Consumer Directed Respite Care go for?

2010-11 CDRC packages were allocated in July 2010 and are funded until 30 June 2012.

The 2011-12 CDRC packages will be allocated in July 2011 and will be funded until 30 June 2012.

Funding beyond this period is to be considered following the evaluation of how effective CDRC is in supporting participating carers.

How are applications assessed?

Applications to become a CDRC Centre were assessed by an Application Assessment Committee within the Department of Health and Ageing. Each application was assessed against the following criteria:
    • Organisational capability – as evidenced by your Centre’s staffing expertise, organisational resources, and capacity to effectively assess carer needs;
    • Experience in providing responsive, innovative carer support services – as demonstrated by your Centre’s past achievements in the delivery of innovative services to carers;
    • Ability to facilitate client choice – as demonstrated by your Centre’s ability to leverage local service delivery networks to support carers and generally support client choice; and
    • Regional need – as demonstrated by evidence of carer demand for a consumer directed respite product in your Centre’s region.Top of page

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