When fires, floods or droughts hit, we briefly shine a light on mental health. But there’s a quiet crisis unfolding daily behind closed doors, with older Australians grappling with loneliness, low mood and declining mental wellbeing.
This is where the award-winning Continuing 2 be Me and C2bMe@home programs – delivered by Uniting NSW.ACT – step in and makes a real difference.
Meet people where they’re at
Our south-western Sydney team recently worked with someone in their early 90s who was living at home. He had firm ideas about what would contribute to his quality of life and what future support might look like when he felt it was required.
After a few sessions with a senior clinician, he told them he really valued their time together because the clinician was not one of the “pushy ones” and offered an optimistic view. By contrast, he’d felt pressured in past interactions with providers who he felt focused too much on deficits and moving him prematurely into residential care.
Their interaction highlights the importance of person-centred, relational support. By focusing on individual capabilities and preferences, therapeutic sessions become truly collaborative and empower and enable people to shape their own care journey.
Connect, reflect, commit
Mental health doesn’t discriminate, but people still do. Older people are too often the forgotten and invisible part of our community, and there’s a persistent stigma around their value and capability. This can contribute to isolation, loss of purpose, depression and poor mental health in the later years of life.
C2bMe@home is a free program that meets older Australians where they are – literally at home in south-west Sydney and in aged care centres across the state – offering practical mental health support for the emotional and psychological wellbeing of people.
The program is people-centred and strengthens connections with participants through deep listening to foster hope, reinforce identity and enhance daily functioning. It is backed by a dedicated team of psychologists, mental health nurses, social workers, counsellors and registered nurses who bring skill, compassion and deep commitment to this vital work.
Every person is supported to live their best life possible.
Invest in mental health for older adults
Nearly 20 per cent of Australians over 65 face mental health challenges. Older adults often face barriers that are under-recognised by policymakers including limited mobility, transport challenges, lack of family support and unresolved grief or trauma.
Sally Roberts, operations manager for both C2bMe and C2bMe@Home, says the mental health system is stretched and support for people with mild-to-moderate health conditions are under-resourced. Yet there is growing recognition of the benefits of a prevention and maintenance approach and its expansion for mental health care.
The in-home program currently only operates in south-west Sydney due to limited funding. However, mental health support should not be postcode dependent. All older adults deserve equal access to mental health services.
As the New South Wales Government prepares to deliver its annual budget this week, Uniting NSW.ACT is calling on the state government to fund mental health services like C2bMe across the state and further expand services in existing areas.
We also call on the Federal Government to extend its funding to support program expansion and sustainability. A $25 million investment in integrated mental health and social support for older adults through Uniting’s C2bMe and C2bMe@Home is recommended, with proven results and potential financial offsets through reduced demand on emergency housing and healthcare, including recurrent hospitalisation.
Older Australians deserve the support they need to live full purposeful lives – wherever they choose to live and call home.
Go to the C2bME website to find out more about the program in residential aged care or call the team on 1800 4C2bMe (1800 4 22263) to find out more about the in-home program.
Chantal Nagib is the head of mental health and wellbeing at Uniting NSW.ACT
Comment on the story below and find more opinion articles here. Do you have an opinion to share about an issue or something topical in the aged care sector? Get in touch at editorial@australianageingagenda.com.au
