Australian Government Directory of Services for Older People 2012-2013
Preventative care
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Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health assessment 
A health assessment is available to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders of all ages. The older person’s health assessment for people 55 years and over involves assessing health and physical, psychological and social function. Preventive health care, education and other assistance may be offered. It is recommended that this health assessment be undertaken annually.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders who might be eligible for this health assessment should speak to their GP, health worker or clinic.
If your medical practitioner bulk-bills, you will not have to pay for the assessment.
Website: Department of Health and Ageing at www.health.gov.au/mbsprimarycareitems
Cancer
The risk of cancer increases with age. More than twice as many cancers are diagnosed in people aged 60 and over compared with people aged less than 60. Smoking, sun exposure, poor diet, alcohol, inadequate exercise or being overweight cause more than 13,000 cancer deaths each year. These deaths can be prevented.Cancer Council Australia recommends seven simple steps for minimising the risk of cancer. Fact sheets and information can be downloaded from Cancer Council Australia’s website.
Phone: 13 11 20 (Cancer Council Helpline)
Website: Cancer Council Australia at www.cancer.org.au
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Dementia
Dementia is not a natural part of ageing. There are things you can do to reduce your risk of developing dementia as you get older.The Dementia Resource Guide identifies resources that address dementia risk reduction strategies.
Phone: 1800 100 500 (National Dementia Helpline)
Website: Department of Health and Ageing at www.health.gov.au/dementia (Dementia Resource Guide)
Diabetes
Diabetes and its complications contribute significantly to ill health, disability and premature death in Australia. Diabetes-related complications include coronary heart disease, stroke, peripheral vascular disease, blindness, kidney disease, limb amputation and impotence.There is evidence that ‘older onset’ or Type 2 Diabetes is the fastest growing chronic disease in Australia. The main risk factors are ageing and obesity.
There are currently over 850,000 people diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and a further estimated 2 million Australians with ‘pre-diabetes’ who are at high risk of getting diabetes in the next five years. Pre-diabetes occurs when blood sugar levels are above normal range but not yet so high that diabetes can be clinically diagnosed.
You can reduce your risk of diabetes significantly by adopting a healthy lifestyle. This means that reducing your weight by even 5 to 10 per cent will help—through physical activity, eating nutritious foods to reduce fat intake, reducing your stress and not smoking.
Early detection and effective management are the keys to diabetes control. Good glucose control can delay the occurrence and slow the progress of complications in all types of diabetes.
See your medical practitioner or contact Diabetes Australia for more information.
Phone: 1300 136 588 (Diabetes Australia)
Email: Diabetes Australia
Website: Diabetes Australia at www.diabetesaustralia.com.au
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Health assessments
Australians aged 75 or over are able to access a Medicare rebate for an annual health assessment undertaken by their GP. This is a voluntary health assessment available regardless of health status. It is intended to alert your medical practitioner to risk factors and hazards to your health that may need further management.New residents of aged care homes are able to accesss a Medicare rebate for a comprehensive medical assessment by their GP on admission. Existing residents are also able to receive a comprehensive medical assessment annually.
If your medical practitioner bulk-bills, you will not have to pay for the annual assessment.
Website: Department of Health and Ageing at www.health.gov.au/mbsprimarycareitems
Healthy eating
Good nutrition is fundamental to all aspects of good health and wellbeing. The Dietary Guidelines for Australian Adults provide recommendations and practical advice on the types of food and the eating patterns that support and promote good nutrition and health. Each guideline relates to a key health issue and is like a piece of a good health puzzle. Free copies of the guidelines are available by contacting National Mailing and Marketing or downloading it from the National Health and Medical Research Council website.Phone: (02) 6269 1080 (National Mailing and Marketing)
Email: National Mailing and Marketing
Websites: National Health and Medical Research Council at www.nhmrc.gov.au
Heart Foundation
The Heart Foundation’s Health Information Service offers free personalised information from qualified health professionals on heart health, nutrition and healthy lifestyle. The service is available during business hours.Phone: 1300 362 787 (Heart Health Information Line)
Website: Heart Foundation at www.heartfoundation.org.au/healthinfo
Email: Heart Foundation
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Lifescripts—advice for healthy living
Lifescripts is a national program that helps GPs and their practices provide lifestyle advice to their patients. Advice may be about quitting smoking, increasing physical activity, eating a healthier diet, reducing alcohol consumption or a combination of these.Your GP can help you by:
- assessing your current lifestyle for any health risks
- giving you personalised advice on healthy changes that work for your lifestyle
- giving you practical help to achieve your goals
- arranging specialised services and access to more information.
Men’s Health Peer Education 
The Men’s Health Peer Education program aims to raise the veteran community’s awareness of men’s health issues by encouraging members of the veteran and ex-service community to share the responsibility for managing their own health and wellbeing. It is a self-help health management program run by volunteer facilitators. The program has a website that provides easy access to information on a wide variety of health conditions such as heart and vascular health, diabetes, mental health and cancer.Phone: 13 32 54 (veterans—capital city callers)
1800 555 254 (veterans—regional callers)
Website: Department of Veterans' Affairs at www.dva.gov.au
National Bowel Cancer Screening Program
Bowel cancer is the second most common internal cancer affecting both men and women and the second most common cause of cancer-related death. The risk of developing bowel cancer increases sharply from the age of 45.Australia has one of the highest rates of bowel cancer in the world. About one in 18 men and one in 27 women will develop bowel cancer before the age of 75.
Bowel cancer screening has been found to be convenient and effective. In the 2011–12 Budget, the Australian Government provided $138.7 million over four years to continue the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program on an ongoing basis.
People turning 50, 55 and 65 years of age are being invited to complete a simple, yet highly effective, faecal occult blood test in the privacy of their own home and send it to a pathology laboratory for analysis. Up to 3.7 million people have received an invitation to participate in this phase of the program.
Phone: 1800 118 868 (National Bowel Cancer Screening Program)
Website: National Bowel Cancer Screening Program at www.cancerscreening.gov.au
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National Stroke Foundation
The National Stroke Foundation is a not-for-profit organisation that works with the public, government, health professionals, patients, carers and stroke survivors to reduce the impact of stroke on the Australian community.Phone: 1800 787 653 (StrokeLine)
Email: National Stroke Foundation
Website: Stroke Foundation at www.strokefoundation.com.au
Postal: National Stroke Foundation
Level 7
461 Bourke Street
MELBOURNE VIC 3000
Physical activity
No matter what your age, weight, health problems or abilities, you should try to do some kind of physical activity. If you are starting an activity program, it is important to start out slowly and increase your activity over time. Older people should exercise for at least 30 minutes each day. Exercise improves strength and balance, and can reduce your risk of falls. It can make your heart healthier and increase your fitness and endurance. It can also contribute to independent living by helping to maintain or increase your ability to undertake daily activities.You can put together your 30 minutes of activity in as little as 10-minute bursts. Doing some physical activity, no matter how little, is better than doing nothing at all. Try to be active every day in as many ways as possible, doing a range of activities that incorporate fitness, strength, flexibility and balance. Choose activities that you enjoy—perhaps do them with a friend to help keep you motivated. This may be a combination of walking, dancing, swimming, bowls, tai chi, cycling, a group activity class, an exercise class, strength training—anything that gets you moving.
If you have enjoyed a lifetime of vigorous physical activity, keep doing so in a way that suits your capability.
If you live with a chronic disease, or if you have stopped exercising because of a new health problem and want to start again, check with your doctor, nurse, physiotherapist, podiatrist or local fitness centre about the type and amount of activity you can do. Remember to start slowly and gradually build up your intensity and duration as your fitness increases.
Choose Health: Be Active is a free booklet to help older Australians improve their health and wellbeing by increasing their physical activity. The booklet discusses a variety of ways you can be more physically active in everyday life.
Phone: 1800 200 422 (National number for information on aged care)
13 32 54 (veterans—capital city callers)
1800 555 254 (veterans—regional callers)
Websites: Department of Health and Ageing at www.health.gov.au
Department of Veterans' Affairs at www.dva.gov.au
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Pneumococcal vaccination
Pneumococcal disease is caused by the bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae. Some types of the bacterium are commonly found in the upper respiratory tract (nose, throat and windpipe) of healthy people. The bacterium can spread between people through infected droplets in the air and by touching an infected person. The disease can cause:- meningitis (infection of the membranes that enclose the brain and spinal cord)
- pneumonia (lung infection)
- septicaemia/bacteraemia (blood system infection)
- middle ear and sinus infections.
People aged 65 years or over should discuss immunisation with their doctor or health care provider.
Adults aged 65 years or over are at higher risk of contracting pneumococcal disease than the rest of the population, with the majority of deaths from this disease occurring in this age group.
One dose of vaccine is required at 65 years of age and only those people at high risk of serious disease should be given a second dose five years after the first.
Phone: 1800 671 811 (Immunise Australia Information Line)
Email: Immunise
Website: Immunise Australia Program at www.immunise.health.gov.au
Postal: Department of Health and Ageing
MDP 13
GPO Box 9848
CANBERRA ACT 2601
Seasonal influenza vaccine
The vaccine is a very important way to help prevent catching influenza (the flu). The best time to be vaccinated is in autumn, before the usual outbreak of winter flu.People eligible to receive the free flu vaccine include:
- people 65 years of age and over
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders 15 years of age and over
- pregnant women
- anyone with medical conditions that predispose them to the risk of complications from influenza.
Concessional or carer status has no bearing on the eligibility for subsidised seasonal influenza vaccine.
Phone: 1800 671 811 (Immunise Australia Information Line)
Email: Immunise
Website: Immunise Australia Program at www.immunise.health.gov.au
Postal: Department of Health and Ageing
MDP 13
GPO Box 9848
CANBERRA ACT 2601
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Sensible alcohol consumption
For many older people, drinking is an important and enjoyable part of a social life. However, people age at different rates and older people who drink alcohol need to reassess their drinking regularly. Older people are more vulnerable to the effects of alcohol due to changes in body composition, decreased metabolic capacity and the presence of other medical conditions. Alcohol can also interact with many medications—check with your GP or pharmacist for details. Research studies have shown that alcohol can increase the risk of falls, motor vehicle accidents and suicide.The Australian Guidelines to Reduce Health Risks from Drinking Alcohol recommend that, for healthy men and women, drinking no more than two standard drinks on any day reduces the lifetime risk of harm from alcohol-related disease or injury; and on a single occasion, drinking no more than four standard drinks reduces the risk of alcohol-related injury arising from that occasion.
Alcohol at www.alcohol.gov.au has posters and brochures with Guidelines messages, and other useful information about alcohol consumption. The Guidelines materials have also been translated for culturally and linguistically diverse readers.
Email: Alcohol Policy
Website: Alcohol at www.alcohol.gov.au
Staying on your feet and avoiding falls
Slips, trips and falls can happen to anyone, but they are more common and more significant as we get older, because we are more likely to injure ourselves. People often dismiss falls as ‘part of getting older’ or ‘just not concentrating’ but falls are often a warning sign that something is not right so it is important to discuss any fall with your doctor.The good news is that there are many things you can do to reduce your risk of falling. The Aged Care Australia website contains a lot of helpful information, including links to the booklet Don’t fall for it. Falls can be prevented! A guide to preventing falls for older people. This booklet is available free of charge from the Department of Health and Ageing website. It is available in English, Polish, Chinese, German, Greek and Italian.
Phone: 1800 200 422 (National number for information on aged care)
Websites: Aged Care Australia at www.agedcareaustralia.gov.au
Department of Health and Ageing at www.health.gov.au
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The Right Mix 
The Right Mix offers veterans a range of resources to recognise whether they have the right balance of alcohol in their lives. It provides tips on what to do if they need to reduce their drinking, along with helpful hints on maintaining a healthy lifestyle.Phone: 13 32 54 (veterans—capital city callers)
1800 555 254 (veterans—regional callers)
Email: The Right Mix
Website: The Right Mix at www.therightmix.gov.au
Tobacco use
Smoking is the leading preventable cause of death and disease in Australia. Scientific evidence confirms that smokers face significantly increased risks of death and or illness from numerous cancers, heart disease, stroke, atherosclerosis, abdominal aortic aneurysm, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, emphysema and other respiratory diseases. Smoking also causes blindness, dental problems, erectile dysfunction and contributes to osteoporosis.Exposure to second-hand smoke also causes premature death and disease in adults and children who do not smoke. There is no risk-free level of exposure to second-hand smoke.
Quitting at any age has benefits. Those who quit the earliest have the largest reduction in risk. For medical advice about giving up smoking, see your medical practitioner, health worker or pharmacist. For general information about giving up smoking, ring Quitline.
Phone: 13 78 48 (Quitline)
Website: Quit Now at www.quitnow.info.au
Veterans and Veterans' Families Counselling Service
The Veterans and Veterans’ Families Counselling Service (VVCS) is a specialised, free and confidential Australia-wide service which provides counselling and group programs to Australian veterans, peacekeepers and serving Australian Defence Force members and their families. VVCS services are also available to eligible war widows and widowers. VVCS staff are professionally qualified and skilled in working with veterans and their families.Veterans of all conflicts and peacekeeping operations, as defined by the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986 and the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004, can access this service. Your partner and in some cases, your children, can also use this service.
Phone: 1800 011 046 (Veterans and Veterans' Families Counselling Service)
Website: Department of Veterans' Affairs at www.dva.gov.au
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