Self-Managed Home Care Packages

With a provider-managed Home Care Package, you are assigned a locally based Care Manager (known as a Wellbeing Manager at Feros Care) who coordinates everything for you and will be your consistent ‘go-to’ for any requests, questions, or needs. This is not the case when you self-manage, as all communications are directed to whoever is available at the time.

Your Care Manger will visit you at home to better understand your living environment, preferences, and any support needs that might be missed by someone unfamiliar with your home setup.

As you are in regular contact and build a strong personal connection, you’re not just ‘another client’. Your Care Manager gets to know you, your story, your likes and dislikes, and your health and wellbeing goals.

They oversee all aspects of your care plan, from organising support services and scheduling each support service visit to managing your Home Care Package budget. They handle all the tedious administration, help you ‘decode’ the complex Australian aged care system, and approach everything with a human touch.

Your Care Manager also has ongoing communication with all of your service suppliers to maintain continuity of care and ensure that you are getting the most out of your Home Care Package.

With provider-managed Home Care Packages, you can focus on what matters most – enjoying your life at home, knowing your care is the experienced hands of someone who really knows YOU.

If you choose to self-manage your Home Care Package:

Self-managing your home care is generally a more cost-effective option, but it also means a lot more ‘work’ for you, a significant time commitment, and requires a comprehensive understanding of the aged care system.

With self-management, you’re responsible for the end-to-end management of your Home Care Package. This includes:

Sourcing and organising your care / support services

Finding and scheduling personal care support and Home Care Package services, whether it be low level care such as personal care assistance, domestic or home maintenance services, or more complex care support, allied health services (including physiotherapy, nursing, wound care, exercise physiology, and podiatry), or social support services.

Managing your care plan

Managing your care plan as a self-managed Home Care Package recipient means that you oversee all aspects of your care. This includes regularly reviewing and updating your care needs, ensuring your services align with those needs, and making adjustments as your circumstances change.

You’ll also be responsible for maintaining records, tracking service delivery, and ensuring that care goals are met. Additionally, you’ll handle all communication with your service providers, be responsible for addressing any concerns or issues with each individual supplier, and will need to be savvy with government guidelines and service supplier compliance.

Managing your Home Care Package funds and budget

You are responsible for tracking all expenses, ensuring services are delivered within your budget, and keeping an eye on any changes in pricing or service fees.

You’ll need to monitor the balance of your package, avoid overspending, and understand how much is allocated towards care services and other fees, factoring in a contingency for unexpected costs.

If you choose a provider-managed Home Care Package:

With a provider-managed Home Care Package, your home care provider, like Feros Care, handles all aspects of your care.

This includes creating and managing your care plan, organising services, handling all administrative tasks, and ensuring your Home Care Package budget is effectively managed to cover the support you require. They monitor your spending and ensure compliance with government regulations, giving you peace of mind that your care and finances are in capable hands.

Unlike a self-managed package, you are assigned a single Care Manager who is your consistent ‘go-to’ for all requests and queries, and ensures continuity of care across each of your service suppliers. They visit you in your home and take the time to get to know you, your history, and your health and wellbeing goals. As they physically see you and stay in regular contact with your services providers, they are well equipped to identify changing support needs to help you stay at home longer.

They regularly review and update your care plan, making adjustments as needed to enhance your comfort and independence. This proactive approach helps anticipate changes in your care requirements, ensuring that you continue receiving the right level of support as your circumstances evolve.

With your dedicated Care Manager guiding you every step of the way, you can rest easy knowing your care is in the hands of a local expert. Both your Care Manager and your service suppliers share information frequently to maximise cohesion and ensure all aspects of your care working seamlessly together.

When deciding if self-management is the right option for you or your loved one, it’s important to have a comprehensive understanding of your budget and your needs.

Self-managed packages typically incur lower fees which can naturally be attractive to many people. However, whilst provider-managed packages are generally more expensive due to the care management fee, this cost covers a wide range of extremely beneficial services and value-adds. Also, there are items included in this care management fee that self-managed providers consider as additional ‘charge for service’ fees – and these can add up fast.

Keep in mind that with self-management, you will not have the one consistent locally based person to liaise with. You will instead be directed to whichever Case Manager is available when you have a request, query, or problem. It will also be your responsibility to update each individual service provider if there is a change in your circumstances as there is no cross-communication.

Your Case Manager does not visit your home to meet you and evaluate your living environment, therefore support needs may be missed. They are often based in a different region or state so it is up to you to know which local service suppliers can best meet your needs and to remain up to date with your state’s aged care regulations and compliance requirements.

Allied health services such as physiotherapy and exercise physiology may not be available in your home as a self-managed package holder, and you pay ‘off the shelf’ pricing for all support services and products.

Know your package management responsibilities

Self-managed Home Care Packages require you to take full responsibility for managing your support services, including managing and modifying your care plan, managing your Home Care Package budget (i.e. budgeting and paying for the care and services yourself), and all administration. As mentioned, this can be a very time-consuming and complicated process so if you are considering self-management, make sure you are in a position to commit the necessary time and effort.

If you’re unsure about managing these responsibilities or find navigating the aged care system overwhelming, a provider-managed Home Care Package might be the better option.

There are so many benefits for choosing a provider-managed Home Care Package and paying the care management fee, rather than self-managing. These include:

All service provider qualifications are pre-checked

When you sign up for a provider-managed Home Care Package, all service suppliers are fully qualified, certified, and meet the latest training requirements.

On the other hand, if you are self-managing, please remember that service suppliers do not always have the right qualifications, certifications, compliance checks, insurances or up-to-date training. It is up to you to do your own research, verify their credentials, and ensure they meet all legal and safety standards.

A Care Manager: Always there for you, always championing YOUR needs

You will be connected to a Care Manager, your ‘one-stop-shop’ for requests who ‘gets under the hood’ to help you live a happier, healthier, and more connected life.

As they get to know you, your backstory, and of course your support needs, they take a personal interest in your wellbeing and develop a thorough understanding of how to best achieve your health goals. They also facilitate communication across your various service providers to ensure everyone is working together seamlessly, helping you make the most of your Home Care Package.

They will visit you personally in your home, enabling them to identify potential safety risks and suggest modifications to your living environment. After seeing your home setup, they can also educate you about living aids you may not know existed to make the day-to-day easier, safer, and more comfortable.

If you were to self-manage, there is no single point of contact, and any requests or queries will be directed to which ever Case Manager is available at the time. Also, unlike Care Managers, Case Managers do not offer home visits.

Locally based support with the right knowledge

Your Care Manager is local so can respond quickly with a vast knowledge of the service providers in your area. They also have a comprehensive understanding of the laws and funding bodies in your state.

This can be different with self-managed providers, as Case Managers are often based in another region or state.

We handle the tedious stuff. You enjoy life!

Provider-managed organisations take care of all administrative tasks, such as finding, coordinating, rostering, and paying for each individual service, managing your budget, addressing any complaints, and ensuring your care plan is up to date.

In contrast, self-managed providers require you to do all of this.

Individual service supplier account set-up fees do not apply

Account set-up fees are already in place with most service suppliers. This is not the case with self-managed providers, so the set-up fees are payable by you.

‘Charge for service’ fees do not apply

The care management fee built into a provider-managed package includes tasks such as sending an email or making a call on your behalf, speaking with My Aged Care, liaising with hospitals, receiving and processing reports, etc.

Many people don’t realise these types of things are not included in a self-managed package and will incur additional ‘charge for service’ fees.

You’ll have more time to do whatever makes you thrive!

As all the administrative tasks and coordination are handled for you, you’ll have more time and energy to focus on what’s important; enjoying life in your own home for longer. Up to two times longer with Feros Care!*

* Feros Care have helped our HCP clients to remain living at home for longer (a median of 24.0 months compared to the national provider average of 15.6 months cited within the 2024 People Leaving Aged Care Report (Australian Government, Australian Institute of Health & Welfare, www.gen-agedcaredata.gov.au).