A recent collaboration between researchers, Emily Todd and Alison Mutch, from the University of Queensland, and Bronwyn Bidstrup from COTA Queensland, found evidence that information and communication technology improves social connectedness for older people to some extent.
The small rural community of Bell at the foothills of the Bunya Mountains have set up a community managed home care service using self-managed home care packages and employing local people to deliver services.
The extra funding will see the line expanded to include outbound calls to carers of people living with dementia, as well as more specific community supports for culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) seniors.
Researchers at Griffith University are looking for volunteers who can participate in their study to explore how COVID-19 related social service closures affect the lives of older people, people with dementia and informal carers in Australia.