Estia Foundation of Australia
FAITHLOVEHOPE
Services
Short term overnight accommodation
Estia's Roselands home - Elpida House - provides service for eligible individuals on a temporary basis. This is a home-away-from-home and a wide range of activities and outings are on offer. A place to make new friends.
Permanent Accommodation/Group Home
Estia cares for eligible individuals permanently in four group-homes located in Gladesville, North Ryde and Blakehurst. Due to demand, Estia is is expanding this service to accommodate people on the wait list, and these positions have been filled. All facilities are clean and modern with up-to-date equipment. Estia boasts professional cooks and our clients are served the finest of foods designed to meet dietary requirements.
Short term overnight accommodation
The Estia Foundation's respite facility is located in Roselands at Elpida House. The respite programs are an important service for both clients and their families as they provide a safe and friendly environment for the service users.
Respite means a welcome break for families, as it gives them a chance to have some space and time out, while knowing that their loved-one is being properly cared for by trained staff. For the service users themselves, it means a holiday where their individual needs can be met in a supported accommodation setting and where the number one priority is for them to be happy and enjoy themselves.
The respite service provides 24 hour a day care for the people receiving support; this includes all aspects of their daily personal care requirements, meal preparation, assistance managing their medication, supervision and assistance when on outings. Each respite facility houses six clients including a crisis bed. Service users can access the service for a minimum stay of three days or a maximum of five weeks per year.
Individuals wishing to use Estia's respite program should contact us in order to arrange an assessment. Assessments are carried out at Estia's head office and usually takes approximately 45 minutes. Potential service users of respite care must be over 16 years of age for Elpida House in Roselands. Service users also need to be specifically diagnosed with an intellectual and/or physical disability and must have short-term accommodation (STA) funding embedded within their NDIS Plans to access the service.
Estia's respite facility in Roselands has essential equipment to provide the most comfortable and safe surrounds for our clients. Pelican belts and lifting devices to assist staff in manual handling are accessible in the house and in all vehicles. As an example, the home has an advanced hydrotherapy bath tub for use while in respite care.
Permanent Accommodation / Group Homes
Estia has four group homes located in Gladesville, North Ryde and Blakehurst. Estia is expanding this service to accommodate people who have been on the waiting list, therefore another two dwellings are under construction at Estia's Blakehurst site. No NDIS funds are given for construction costs. Estia uses its own capital to build accommodation settings for people with disabilities. NDIS funds are allocated to individual participants who essentially use these amounts to purchase supports provided to them by Estia staff inside the homes.
Eligible adults with intellectual and physical disabilities reside in the group homes on a full-time basis. Permanent accommodation has allowed independence and a sense of stability for these service users. Family members and friends often visit and each resident has the freedom to visit their parental home too.
Group homes are staffed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The residents living there have a wide range of needs. There is a team of support staff including team leaders, who are responsible for ensuring that each client's individual daily needs are met. Staff assist the residents:
- stay healthy and safe
- develop a person-centred lifestyle plan
- develop and maintain friendships and social relationships
- participate in household routines
- maintain personal care
- plan and be assisted to access recreation programs
- plan for leisure activities and holidays
- participate in community activities
- develop and maintain skills for independent living
- access services that promote health and wellbeing.
Clients have their own interests and are encouraged to maintain these hobbies. The residents are also involved in a number of combined activities such as picnics, road trips, dinners at least once a week, out for lunch, going to the movies and bowling.
Any person with a disability seeking permanent accommodation in a group home environment must have Supported Independent Living (SIL) funding in their NDIS Plan. Support Coordinators can assist participants to obtain NDIS SIL funds by engaging an Occupational Therapist to perform a 'Functional Assessment', which in turn will be used as evidence and presented to the NDIS. Due to the NDIS being an evidence-based scheme, supporting documents need to stipulate a rationale as to why SIL accommodation is a requirement and safest option for the participant. The NDIS will then make a decision as to whether SIL funds will be allocated to the participant based upon the evidence submitted to them.
In any SIL facility, participant compatibility must be assessed carefully by Estia, the participant, families, support coordinators and allied health professionals.
How to Access Services
Respite
Service users wishing to access respite must:
- Must be a participant in NDIS and have NDIS STA funding in their plan
- Must be 18 years and over
- Must have an intellectual and/or physical disability
- Make an appointment for an assessment to determine service suitability
- Must sign a service agreement.
For the assessment, potential service users must bring:
- Medicare Card
- Disability Pension Card
- Epilepsy Management Plan (if applicable)
- Behaviour Support Plan (if applicable)
- Allergy Management Plan (if applicable)
- Name and contact details of GP and other specialist medical professionals
- Name and contact details of other day programs accessed.
To arrange an appointment for an initial assessment, please contact our office.
Group Home
We currently have a wait-list for permanent accommodation. Participants who wish to register on the wait-list, please contact our office.
Donations are tax-deductible and greatly appreciated. Please help us continue our work.
Estia has changed our lives. We can now go away and know Emma is safe. They have cared for Emma for four weeks straight and during that time we were able to go overseas - and that, for us, is priceless.
I walk away feeling a bit sad that I can't take my girl with me, but feel relieved that I don't have to worry about her one bit when she is there. They know Emma so well and they have a good understanding of what we want as parents and that is very important to us.
I'd like to express my gratitude, not only for what you have done for my brother Kosta, but for our family as a whole. A day does not go by that I don't thank God for your intervention, support and existence, when everything suddenly came crashing down.
Every family member with a disabled child worries about who will care for them once they are gone. The reality of this was an impossible concept for my mother to consider. Nothing could happen to her because she had my brother to look after.
Every time I look at my brother I am in awe of who he has become. His independence and strength astounds me and this is because of what you have done for him.
I had a lady from ADHC (a service for people with disabilities) who found Estia for me and we have been going there for a couple of years. To be honest with you it was the best thing that happened to me.
I am a full-time carer - 24/7 - and I can't just go to the shops or anywhere else. At least when she is at Estia I can do the things I need to do.