Design matters
16 November 2023 12 noon - 12:45pm AEDT
The Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety found that the built environment can be supportive, familiar and therapeutic or it can be a barrier to independent functioning and a high quality of life.The physical environment of an aged care home can help reduce stress, compensate for impairments, and support resident autonomy. Good environments are the product of a team effort that engages care, design, and property professionals.The Commonwealth Department of Health and Aged Care has been working with older people, the aged care sector and design experts to improve the design of residential aged care accommodation.These consultations are helping to create a new Residential Aged Care Accommodation Framework, including National Aged Care Design Principles and Guidelines, to be introduced 1 July 2024. Draft National Aged Care Design Principles and Guidelines were released in September 2023 for further consultation and testing with the sector.This session will run through the content of the draft Principles and Guidelines, with relevance to aged care executive, property and asset professionals.
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Our Expert Panel:
Robert Day
Assistant Secretary of the Dementia, Diversity & Design Branch at the Commonwealth Department of Health and Aged Care.
Robert brings over 15 years of professional experience in the Australian Public Service. He and his team are responsible for measures to:
- Support the aged care sector to meet the needs of people with diverse characteristics and experiences
- Improve the quality of life for people living with dementia and their families and carers, including building the capacity of carers and the aged care workforce
- Improve the design of residential aged care accommodation to reflect the needs and desires of older Australians.
Liz Fuggle
Constructive Dialogue Architects
Liz is a UK registered architect and associate at Constructive Dialogue Architects. Liz is the other the lead authors of the draft National Aged Care Design Principles and Guidelines. Prior to moving to Sydney she worked for ten years for dementia design specialists BPA Architecture. Her design of CareUK’s Edinburgh home was nominated in the 2014 Pinder’s awards for ‘Best Large Dementia Home’. As an Associate with Stirling University’s DSDC she conducted audits and delivered design training to architects and care providers. Liz spent six years at HammondCare, designing and delivering buildings and delivering design training dementia specialists through their Dementia Centre.
Nick Seeman
Constructive Dialogue Architects & Dementia Training Australia
Nick is one of the lead authors of the draft National Aged Care Design Principles and Guidelines. He is the managing director of Constructive Dialogue Architects, a firm with experience and expertise supporting aged care, Aboriginal health services, and other social services. They currently provide strategic, architectural and project management services to various levels of government and community-based providers. Nick also leads the Dementia Training Australia Environments Team providing nation-wide workforce training.