Videos help providers apply spiritual care

A series of short animated films focused on spiritual care and the quality standards has been launched to help aged care embed practices into their services.

The videos provide tools and direction on understanding the place of meaning, purpose and connectedness

A series of short animated films focused on spiritual care and the quality standards has been launched to help aged care embed practices into their services.

The five YouTube videos provide tools and direction to aged care organisations, executives and care staff on understanding on the place of meaning, purpose, connectedness and other ideas related to contemporary spiritual care in Australia.

They have been developed by national spiritual care and ageing peak body Meaningful Ageing Australia and connect the federally-funded provider resource National Guidelines for Spiritual Care in Aged Care with areas in the Aged Care Quality Standards that spirituality needs to be embedded.

Meaningful Ageing Australia CEO Ilsa Hampton said the videos introduced the overall concept of spirituality into aged care organisational thinking and processes.

Ilsa Hampton

“Helping organisations to understand contemporary spiritual care remains a key challenge in the sector,” Ms Hampton said.

“The films illustrate how emotional support in action can be employed in big and small ways to enable each and every person to age well, by reflecting on their life’s journey, their own values and the legacy they’re leaving,” she said.

Ms Hampton said spirituality is about meaning, purpose and connectedness.

“In modern Australia, a person’s belief system is just part of the bigger picture of spirituality. Our need for connectedness, whether with self, others, nature or the sense of something bigger is part of being human,” Ms Hampton said.

Content in the video was developed in consultation with providers including RAAFA WA, Anglicare, Autumn Lodge, Masonic Care Tasmania, Royal Freemansons’ Benevolent Institution and SummitCare.

The videos address:

  • spirituality not being confined to religion
  • how care staff contribute to each person’s spiritual wellbeing
  • key responsibilities and concepts for executives and senior staff
  • assessment and planning
  • examples of spiritual care in action.

Meaningful Ageing Australia developed the videos with $544,000 in funding it received from the commonwealth government in May to roll out this and the See me. Know me. initiative (read more here).

The videos can be viewed online via Meaningful Ageing Australia and the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission’s and websites or via a USB that can be ordered for offline viewing.

Access the videos and order the USB here.

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Tags: Aged Care Quality Standards, aged-care-quality-and-safety-commission, anglicare, Autumn Lodge, Ilsa Hampton, Ken Wyatt, MAA, masonic care tasmania, meaningful-ageing-australia, Minister for Senior Australians and Aged Care, national guidelines for spiritual care in aged care, news-5, RAAFA WA, Royal Freemansons’ Benevolent Institution, summitcare,

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