The Aged Care Assessment Service (ACAS)

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Overview

Aged Care Assessment Services (ACAS) are independent teams who assist frail older people and their carers identify what kind of care will best meet their needs.

Assessment teams are multi-disciplinary and can include health professionals such as medical officers, social workers, nurses, occupational therapists and physiotherapists.

They conduct comprehensive medically based assessments for those needing community services or aged care residential services. They assess for all restorative and potential care options.

For an older person to access Commonwealth funded residential care, residential respite, Community Aged Care Packages (CACPs), Extended Aged Care in Home (EACH) packages or flexible care, they must first be assessed as eligible by an ACAS.

For information regarding the Aged Care Assessment Minimum Data Set, please visit the following page: www.health.vic.gov.au/agedcare/services/acas_mds.htm

For information regarding location and telephone numbers of ACAS Services refer to the attached list.

Aged Care Assessment Services (ACAS) contact list 2011 (14kb, pdf)

Improving aged care assessment services

In 2011 the Protocol between the Aged Care Assessment Service and Office of the Public Advocate has been updated. The purpose of this protocol is to assist both programs to work together in order to promote the rights and best interests of people with a disability.

Strengthening aged care assessments for Aboriginal consumers provide best practice guidelines to support the culturally appropriate assessment of Aboriginal people and improve access to aged care services for aboriginal people. The guidelines were developed through statewide consultation with ACAS services, Aboriginal HACC services, Aboriginal Liaison Officers and Aboriginal Hospital Liaison Officers.

The Guidelines for streamlining pathways between ACAS and HACC assessment services aim to make sure that frail older people get the right assessment at the right time, minimise the number of times clients or their carers have to tell their story and to reduce waiting times for assessment by using resources as efficiently as possible. These guidelines form the basis for regional MOUs between HACC assessment services and ACAS.

National Ageing Research Institute has produced a series of tip sheets and a report for use by ACAS clinicians in order to improve the assesment of dementia and depression in older people from a CALD background.

The Disability Services - Aged Care Assessment Services Protocol 2009 outlines referral and assessment process for younger people with a disability to promote access to the most appropriate options for care. The protocol is available from the Disability services website.

The Protocol between the Victorian ACAS and aged persons mental health (APMH) September 2008 is available from the Mental health website.

Downloads

Protocol between the Aged Care Assessment Service and Office of the Public Advocate (363kb, pdf)

Strengthening aged care assessments for Aboriginal consumers (325kb, pdf)

Guidelines for streamlining pathways between ACAS and HACC assessment services (292kb, pdf)

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