Dementia care — at home and in the community

What dementia care services can include

Dementia care is support designed around the needs, routines and circumstances of a person living with dementia. It may involve assistance at home, personal care, community participation or respite care, depending on the individual and their funding.

There is no single model of dementia care. Two people with the same diagnosis can need very different support, and what helps often changes over time. Good dementia care at home usually starts with the person's own routines — when they like to wake, wash, eat and go out — and builds support around them rather than asking them to fit a schedule.

In practice, home and community care often covers help with showering and dressing, meal preparation, prompts and reminders, light domestic tasks, and company through the day. Community-based support can mean getting to a familiar café, a walking group, a day program, an appointment or a place of worship, with a worker alongside for reassurance rather than to take over.

Familiar routines and personal preferences matter a great deal. Families often ask providers to keep the same small team where possible, to follow the same order of tasks each visit, and to record preferences such as favourite meals, music, names and past work or hobbies. Communication support can include speaking slowly, using short sentences, allowing time to respond, and involving a family member or nominee in updates.

Safety considerations are usually practical: safe movement around the home, kitchen and bathroom set-up, help remembering appointments, and clear steps for what a worker does if the person becomes distressed or does not answer the door. Useful questions to ask a provider include how they record preferences, how they handle changes to the roster, who to contact after hours, and how they respond when needs change.

This page is general information to help you understand the options and find a provider. It is not medical advice. Questions about diagnosis, medication, capacity or clinical risk should be discussed with a GP or other appropriately qualified health professional.

• At-home and community-based support
• Support shaped by individual needs and routines
• A practical role for families and carers

Who dementia care at home may suit

This page is for people living with dementia and the people around them — partners, adult children, carers and plan nominees who are trying to work out what help is available and who to call.

Support needs vary widely. Some people want a few hours of help each week so they can stay independent at home for longer. Others need daily assistance with personal care, meals and getting out into the community. Carers often reach out when they are managing well but need a break, or when a hospital stay or a change at home has made the current arrangement unworkable.

We do not assess anyone or make assumptions about diagnosis, capacity, eligibility or where someone should live. Our role is to understand what you are looking for and connect you with providers who may be able to help.

• People living with dementia
• Families and carers arranging support
• Plan nominees and support coordinators
• Different levels of support need, from occasional to daily

Dementia support at home

Dementia support at home refers to services provided in a person's home or local community, rather than in a residential setting. The type of support a family looks for will depend on the person's circumstances, preferences and day-to-day needs. My Care Link Australia helps families and carers look for providers whose service information matches the details they share.

When comparing dementia home care options, consider what support is being sought, where it is needed, preferred times and any communication or routine preferences that are important to the person and family. Ask each provider directly about the services they offer, their experience, current availability, costs and any requirements that may apply. Provider availability and suitability must be confirmed with the provider.

Funding and access pathways vary. Read the existing "Home Care Package pathway" and "NDIS pathway (under 65)" sections on this page for general pathway information. These sections do not confirm eligibility, funding or service availability. If you would like help finding a provider, use the existing enquiry form to tell My Care Link Australia what you are looking for.

Dementia care services at home and in the community

The supports below are the categories families ask us about most often. Whether any of them are available to a particular person depends on their needs, their funding and what providers in their area are able to offer, so treat these as examples rather than a set package.

• Personal care — help with showering, dressing, grooming and other daily routines, delivered in a way that protects dignity and familiarity.
• Support workers — regular in-home assistance with everyday tasks, meals, medication prompting and companionship.
• Community participation — support to keep doing the things that matter, such as social groups, walks, shopping, hobbies or faith communities.
• Transport — assistance getting to appointments, day programs and social activities where a provider offers it.
• Respite care — short breaks for carers, arranged in the home, in the community or as a short stay elsewhere.

Choosing dementia care that fits your needs

Before comparing providers, it helps to write down what the arrangement actually needs to look like. Start with location: the suburb where support is needed, how far a worker would travel, and whether visits are needed at set times of day. Then consider the care setting — support at home, support out in the community, a mix of both, or in-home and residential respite so a carer can rest.

Routines come next. Note the times of day that are difficult, the order that works best for washing, dressing and meals, and the things that should not change. Set out your support priorities in order, because few arrangements cover everything at once: personal care, meals, company, getting out, or giving a carer a regular break.

Family involvement is worth agreeing early. Decide who the provider should contact, how often updates are expected, and whether a nominee needs to be included in decisions. When you speak with providers, ask about their experience supporting people living with dementia, how they keep the same workers where possible, and how they adapt when needs change.

Funding and eligibility depend on individual circumstances and are decided by the relevant government body, so treat any figures or program names you read as something to confirm through official sources before you commit.

• Location, travel and preferred visit times
• Care setting: at home, in the community, or a mix
• Routines and preferences that should stay consistent
• Support priorities ranked, not all at once
• Who the provider contacts and how often
• Provider experience supporting people living with dementia

Understanding your care pathway

Funded support in Australia generally comes through either the aged care system or the NDIS. Which pathway applies depends on personal circumstances, including age at diagnosis, and it is decided by the relevant government body — not by us and not by a provider.

Some people search for a 'staying at home program'. That phrase is used loosely to describe receiving support at home rather than moving into residential care. Before relying on any program name, check the current terminology and rules on the relevant official government website, because aged care programs have been changing.

• The right pathway depends on personal circumstances
• Aged care is the usual route for older Australians
• The NDIS may apply for eligible people under 65
• Verify current program names and rules through official government sources

Home Care Package pathway

For many older Australians living with dementia, a Home Care Package is the main way in-home support is funded. Access begins with an assessment arranged through My Aged Care, and the outcome reflects the level of support a person is assessed as needing. Once a package is assigned, the person or their representative chooses an approved provider to manage it.

Assessment steps, package levels, subsidy amounts and program names should be confirmed against current official information before you make decisions. Our Home Care Packages explained guide walks through how packages work in more detail, including what a Level 3 Home Care Package and other higher levels are typically used for.

• An at-home support pathway for older Australians
• Access follows an individual assessment
• Confirm current details through official government sources

NDIS pathway (under 65)

Where dementia is diagnosed before the age of 65, the NDIS may be the relevant pathway. Age alone does not confirm eligibility — access decisions are made by the NDIA based on individual circumstances and evidence, and we cannot tell you whether an application will succeed.

If a person does have an NDIS plan, the supports funded in it are set out in that plan. Once you know what the plan includes, we can help you look for providers who deliver those kinds of supports in your area. We do not determine eligibility, influence plan decisions or guarantee that funded support will be approved.

• Eligibility varies and is decided by the NDIA
• Funded supports depend on the individual plan
• Provider matching comes after needs are understood

How to choose a dementia-experienced provider

Experience with dementia is not the same as experience in aged care generally. The difference usually shows up in the small things — whether a worker knows how to respond when someone is confused or distressed, whether the same person comes each week, and whether the service is willing to adapt as needs change.

It is reasonable to ask direct questions before you commit. A provider that answers them clearly, in plain language, is telling you something useful about how they work.

• What relevant dementia experience do your workers have, and what training do they receive?
• How do you keep continuity, so the same familiar people attend where possible?
• How do you communicate with the person and with family or a nominee?
• What is included in the service, and what falls outside it?
• How does the service work with our funding arrangement and location?
• What happens if support needs change, or if something goes wrong?

How My Care Link Australia helps

My Care Link Australia connects participants, families, plan nominees and providers with disability and aged care support services across Australia. You tell us what you are looking for — the suburb, the kind of support, and anything that matters about routines or communication — and we look for providers who may suit.

Our service is free to use, and we do not charge families. We are not a clinical service and we do not make eligibility decisions: our role is provider matching, which is a different thing from medical advice or a funding assessment. You can read how provider matching works before you get in touch.

We cannot promise that a particular provider will be available, and we do not speak for providers about their registration, capacity or clinical expertise. What we can do is save you the hours usually spent ringing around.

• You share what you need
• We look for providers who may suit
• Available Australia-wide
• No availability or outcome guarantees