Global Centre for Modern Ageing Partners With The Australian Centre for Social Innovation and SA Health to Deliver Stakeholder Engagement Innovation Program
Shift in consumer demand
The age services industry has undergone an enormous shift in culture and values, in line with government reforms and changing consumer behaviour. However, to truly understand the needs and desires of consumers─including the next generation of older Australians─there must be effective stakeholder engagement.
Stakholder engagement innovation
The Global Centre for Modern Ageing (GCMA), partnering with The Australian Centre for Social Innovation (TACSI), was engaged by SA Health to work with the Strathalbyn community and clinicians in the redesign of aged care in Strathalbyn, South Australia.
The project was supported by funding from SA Health and overseen by the SA Health Office for Ageing Well and Country Health SA Local Health Network.
The project engaged aged care residents, health professionals and Strathalbyn locals to become part of a nation-leading initiative to co-design a new aged care precinct to better meet the needs of residents now and into the future.
During March 2019, over 180 aged care residents, health professionals and community members contributed in workshops, interviews and a community forum to the development of design principles which will guide the planning of the new aged care facility and services in Strathalbyn.
The community shared ideas, insights and unmet needs in relation to ageing well and a high-level vision that future aged care should be interconnected within the community which meets the needs of different people.
Co-design solutions
The insights gathered during the community engagement process were consolidated into six design principles that could guide the future provision of aged care.
The design principles outline key elements of home and life that could be incorporated into the future aged care facility and precinct to ensure they are places that the community value, where residents want to live, and families want to visit.
The findings of this valuable report offer a unique perspective into what older people in Strathalbyn believe will help them age well and remain connected to their community. The project helped highlight the most important aspects for aged care that will better meet the needs of the community, now and into the future.
It is hoped that the design principles not only inform the design of the physical spaces, but also be applied to the service model of the new residential care facility in Strathalbyn.
Six design prinicples:
- Home – not institution: create a sense of ‘home’ (for any context where people are living).
- Social connection: enable meaningful connections with others and the places where people live.
- Meaning and purpose: maintain meaning and purpose in an individual’s life.
- Choice and control: offer greater choice and control in how individuals can live their lives.
- Valuing people: value people, their experience, and their contribution.
- Transitions: enable resilience and access to the proper supports that help people successfully navigate transitions.
Broad application
If you involve people in the design process, they are more likely to engage positively with the future aged care services. At the core of this project is a commitment to develop a place that the community values─where residents want to live, families want to visit, and the community is actively involved.
While created for the Strathalbyn facility and the broader precinct, the design principles and insights outlined in the report could be used to inform the future design of the Strathalbyn aged care precinct, and influence a broader model of care for South Australia and the design of leading aged care services in other communities.
More information
For more information please visit www.gcma.net.au/case-study/sa-health