The accreditation applies to three of its residential care homes: Copperhouse Court and Yeltana in Whyalla, and Parafield Gardens in Adelaide.
To earn this national recognition, Helping Hand had to meet at least four out of eight key standards set by the Australian Government to improve care for older people with specific backgrounds, such as Forgotten Australians and others who experienced trauma.
Changing aged care for the better
Helping Hand has spent several years creating meaningful change across the organisation. Their focus? Making sure all staff understand trauma-aware care — through training, education, awareness, and lived experience.
They’ve worked closely with their Forgotten Australians and Care Leavers Advisory Group, who helped shape staff education and even designed changes to the care home environment.
Real voices, real impact
Jan Schaffarz, a member of the advisory group and the South Australian representative on the Alliance for Forgotten Australians, was a key part of the team that developed the training resources.
“In the big scheme of things, it’s quite an achievement,” she says. “Being a part of that means a lot. I was a bit nervous about my involvement in the beginning, but now I’m happy to spread the word, have conversations and raise awareness of trauma.”
Samantha Giorgatzis, Helping Hand’s Executive Manager of Strategy and Engagement, adds: “We are incredibly proud to be the first aged care provider in South Australia to achieve verification for care leavers.
“This work is transformational for staff, and for the ways that people deliver truly individualised and trauma-aware care… it ensures that Forgotten Australians and care leavers have increasing choice when it comes to accessing aged care services.”
Free resources for Aged Care Providers
Helping Hand is also helping others in the aged care sector. Since 2019, their Real Care The Second Time Around project has trained more than 6,000 aged care workers across Australia. Thousands more have completed free online training through Helping Hand’s website.
The training includes:
- A Real Care Toolkit
- E-learning on working with people who’ve experienced childhood trauma
- Tips on having respectful and inclusive conversations
- Short refresher modules
All resources are free to access and download here.
