Dementia among aged care residents: first information from the Aged Care Funding Instrument

The Aged Care Funding Instrument (ACFI) is a new tool to appraise the care needs of permanent residents in residential aged care facilities in Australian Government subsidized aged care.

The ACFI appraisal was used to identify more than 104,400 permanent residents in 2008-09 who had a diagnosis of dementia. This equates to 53% of all residents with an ACFI appraisal in this financial year. Seventy per cent of residents with a dementia diagnosis were female reflecting their overall proportion in residential care. Approximately 79% of all residents with dementia were aged 70 years and over.

The report analyses data extracted from the Australian Department of Health and Ageing’s Aged and Community Care Management Information System (ACCMIS). This Management System holds administrative data on approved services to care recipients and residents and payment of funding to approved providers of community and residential care. This report outlines the demographic characteristics and care requirements of permanent residents with a diagnosis of dementia and other residents in Australian Government subsidised residential aged care facilities in 2008–09, as identified by information from the Aged Care Funding Instrument (ACFI). The report is structured as follows:
• Chapter 2 describes the background and purpose of the ACFI, how it is used and the information it collects.
• Chapter 3 examines how dementia is defined and described in the ACFI and what diagnostic sources are used.
• Chapter 4 discusses the characteristics and care needs of aged care residents with a diagnosis of dementia. It also includes data on the comorbidities of residents with a diagnosis of dementia and the completed length of stay of residents with a diagnosis of dementia compared with other residents.
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• Chapter 5 presents some characteristics of residential aged care facilities that provide care to people with a diagnosis of dementia and information on the average amount of Australian Government subsidy (excluding supplements) provided to care for these people, as compared to other residents.

The information within the report provides a resource for program planners and funders and identifying needs for residential aged care, both now and in the future.

http://www.aihw.gov.au/publication-detail/?id=10737419025&tab=2