At Care Options, our mission is to support people to live as independently as possible whilst enabling people to actively participate in their community.

In order to deliver on our mission, we place people at the centre of everything we do, recognising wellbeing and independence is our primary concern. We achieve this by focusing on building capacity, by looking at people’s abilities, rather than difficulties, by looking at what a person can do rather than what they can’t do and by working collaboratively to achieve goals. We are committed to providing our best. The relationships we build are crucial to the success of people’s wellbeing. It is important that our staff tenure is high and turnover is low to ensure continuity of these relationships.

Our mission

Is to support people to live and participate in their community.

Our vision

is for Care Options to be the first choice in community care.

Values

Respect, Integrity, Vibrancy and Excellence.

From the Board

This truly is an exciting time to be part of a community centered business that has so much potential in a continually growing market. The ageing demographics of Australia’s population means there is an increased need for quality aged care and as a highly progressive organisation, Care Options is extremely well positioned to respond to the growing demand for aged care services.

These past 12 months have seen Care Options be true to our Mission, Vision and Values and align our business with our strategic plan. With 19 years experience, we continue to provide services that enable people to live independently and participate in their community. The increase in choice and control for people is a change we are actively preparing for and this past year has resulted in a number of initiatives implemented within our organisation.

One of the remarkable attributes of Care Options is our agility and the absolute commitment from our entire workforce towards our Vision. We have built considerable capacity, including staff and system capability, business intelligence and a positive organizational culture. We have also achieved an unprecedented end of year financial position which will allow us to re-invest in further development of our care provision programs.

We saw the recruitment of four new board members in 2015 who have contributed new knowledge and skills to the team and are going to be pivotal in continuing to grow our organization.

Our foundation for growth is strong and I look forward to the continued success of Care Options as we seek to expand our footprint and establish new services aligning to our mission, vision and values.

Thank you to everyone for another great year for Care Options.

Barbara Powell Chairperson

"With 19 years experience, we continue to provide services that enable people to live independently and participate in their community."

Play Barbara's Video

From the CEO

Welcome to the 2016 Care Options Annual Report. In my first year as CEO of Care Options I am pleased to report on the 2015/16 financial year, a year of organisational growth and the stabilisation of our platform for further growth and change.

Older Australians want more control, choice and better access to the services they need. Most people want to remain in their own homes for as long as possible. We welcome the proposed ‘Aged Care Roadmap’ and the breaking down of silos of different Aged Care funding streams, allowing consumers to receive the same government contribution regardless of whether they receive support in their home or in a residential care facility. It opens up tremendous opportunity for innovation and increased flexibility in the way we can respond to clients’ needs and expectations, including occasional and early intervention programs. We have seen a significant shift in the way we support clients with many of our services such as the Home Independence Program and the Reablement focused, centre based programs breaking the old paradigms of community care. We also recognise the important role that technology continues to play in our service delivery models, providing us with real time information and allowing us to respond quickly to clients changing needs.

With increased market competition, we want to be best placed to respond to clients’ needs and expectations and doing so, provide excellence in all aspects of the client’s journey with Care Options.

The 2015/16 federal budget announced several initiatives including establishing a single quality framework and exploring options for private market provision of accreditation services. In early 2016 we embarked on a journey to attain formally recognised accreditation through the Australian Council of Healthcare Standards (ACHS) against the Evaluation and Quality Improvement Program 6th Edition (EQuIP6) Standards. Our focus is to provide evidence of the maturity of our systems and processes in regards to Clinical, Support and Corporate areas of our business.

"Everyone within the organisation is now responsible for contributing to our culture with their individual behaviours and commitment to our core values of Respect, Integrity, Vibrancy and Excellence."

Play Sheilah's Video

Helping people enjoy life

At Care Options we provide a range of in-home support and community care services in Perth and South West metro WA. But that’s not exactly what we do. What we really do is help people enjoy life.

Our support is all about the people within our community. Whether its everyday care and support, or help for a family member, we work to create a personalised solution that works for everyone.

We cover all areas of everyday life, including:

In-home, personal and respite care. Practical help and in-home support with everything, from cooking, cleaning and shopping, through to washing and dressing.
Door-to-door transport services. Transport and assistance to go to the shops, medical appointments, social events and visiting friends and family.
Social activities and day centres. Offering a host of programs where one can meet new people, catch up with old friends for lunch, on a day out, or take up a new hobby.
Housing and home support. From practical support finding a home or maintaining an existing one, through to financial support for adapting the home and requirements.

It has been a busy, productive and rewarding months in our sector and within Care Options. We have delivered over 112,000 hours of care to over 2,000 clients and conducted over 4,000 assessments in WA and the metro Adelaide region. We have built on our reputation as a provider of quality care which is translated in 96.9% of clients being very satisfied with the quality of care and services they receive which has been maintained over many years. We have consolidated our assessment services in South Australia and we are continually looking for further opportunities to peruse in that region.

"Whether its everyday care and support, or help for a family member, we work to create a personalised solution that works for everyone."

Jean and Martin How respite saved my sight

Jean says she can’t praise Care Options staff enough, particularly Leanne and Gavin, who cared for Martin while Jean had her eye treatments.

Martin and Jean have travelled the world. Martin devoted his life to the church and was a minister in New Guinea as well as Australia. He was also a schoolteacher for many years. In around 2002 however, Martin became ill and Jean became his primary carer.

In early 2016 Martin became palliative after a long journey of ill health. This year Jean was also diagnosed with macular degeneration and told she needed treatment at the Fremantle Hospital every four weeks. The appointments were a 45 minute drive from Martin and Jean’s house, leaving her with a dilemma of how to care for Martin and get to her appointments. She didn’t know how she was going to attend the treatment she so needed to save her eyesight...

Connie and Pierini Home is where the heart is

Connie and Pierini moved to Australia from Italy when they were very young. With a family of five girls and three boys, there wasn’t much space growing up and Connie reminisces of topping and tailing and sharing beds with their siblings. With such a big family, they were taught the importance of helping one another out from a young age and everyone had their own jobs around the house.

Fast forward 80 years and sisters Connie and Pierini now live together again. Connie moved into Pierini’s house after her husband passed away and her health started to deteriorate with Alzheimer’s. Pierini is now her sister's main carer and supports her with most everyday tasks.

Connie and Pierini both attend Care Options day centre programs at Kennedy House where they socialise and participate in various activities and outings. Pierini receives respite from her full-time caring role, Connie has support with her morning shower and personal needs and they both receive assistance with transport...

Watch their story Read more

Clients at the centre of everything we do

Excellence in care can only occur when there is true choice for clients and this year we have been working to deepen our understanding of what is important to people in their partnership with Care Options.

We have established a Client and Carer Reference Group as a means for us to consult, test ideas, learn and work together to collaborate on our services.
We have learnt it is often the little things that make the biggest difference and it is the relationship between clients and direct care providers that’s valued most. This has led to us empowering staff to respond to clients’ needs and preferences at the point of care, without the need to call the office or seek approval.
We know people want simplicity wherever possible and we have been working to streamline our back of office processes to ensure contact with clients is consistently client-centric, rather than system driven.
In December, we surveyed clients to find what they value in our communication. This led to more tailored content in our Caring Times Newsletter and a growing online presence through social media.

Overall, how satisfied are you with the service you receive from Care Options?

Do you believe Care Options services give you a better quality of life?

How likely are you to recommend Care Options to other people?

I am actively involved in all decisions about my care and believe my services are tailored to my needs.

Quality safety

This year we appointed a dedicated Quality and Risk Coordinator who brings a wealth of experience in Quality and Accreditation.

This role is pivotal in engaging, educating and supporting our staff to recognise opportunities for improvement, consult with internal stakeholders to make changes and implement and evaluate these to close the continual improvement loop.

Since the review of our continual improvement processes, we have seen a dramatic decrease in the turnaround time for actioning feedback and a significant increase in the number of staff raising continual improvements as our staff began to see the benefits of their contribution and the positive outcomes for key stakeholders

In February we participated in the National Aged Care Quality Indicator Home Care Program Pilot which will inform the development of National Quality Indicators for Aged Care. We participated in the Client Goal Attainment stream where we measured the achievement of client set goals over the pilot period.

Home Care Common Standards, Australian Aged Care Quality Agency (AACQA)

In February, 2016 the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency found that Care Options meets 18 out of 18 expected outcomes of the Home Care Standards.

In March Zurich Financial Services Australia Ltd conducted an audit of Care Options. The purpose of the audit was to review safety and injury management for the purpose of assessing workers compensation exposures and controls. Zurich were pleased with Care Options proactive approach to the audit recommendations.

"In February, 2016 the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency found that Care Options meets 18 out of 18 expected outcomes of the Home Care Standards."

Key projects

Culture Development

In early 2015 we identified the need to strengthen our foundations and embrace change to enable the organisation to achieve its three year strategic goals. In addition, a review of our Mission, Vison and Values was commissioned to ensure they remain valid and consistent with today’s consumer driven market.

As a result of this realisation to strengthen our foundations and refresh our Mission, Vision and Values we conducted an organisation wide culture survey. The survey gave us a clearly defined current and preferred culture and a number of ways to achieve our preferred culture.

One of the strategies was the creation of a Culture Optimisation Group (COG) with rotating membership from staff in the organisation. It is a cross-functional group of representatives who are tasked with the responsibility to create initiatives, activities and events to transform our culture. A key initiative from this culture development program has been the creation of Care Options eight key behaviours that align with our core values. We are now into our second COG with new members of staff taking on the challenge every three months.

As staff members of Care Options, we will:

Key Projects - Culture Development Diagram

"I found it to be one of the most rewarding, inspiring and informative groups I have been a member of.”
CEO, Sheilah Cummins

"Being on COG has given me a whole new perspective on the organisation. I now have a better understanding of other areas and have got to know people in the office.”
Joanne Piachniarski

"The contact with the CEO has been awesome, I have a much more positive and balanced view of Care Options.”
Carole Jones

Home Independence Program

Our Home Independence (HIP) Program wrapped up in June 2016. This was a two year program which Care Options ran as a pilot with the WA Department of Health. The purpose of the program was to maximise people’s independence and quality of life, by:

assisting people to achieve their maximum level of independence
helping people regain their confidence
removing or reducing the need for ongoing care
preventing or delaying loss of personal functionality
promoting healthy ageing.

We supported 68 people to access the program for up to 13 weeks, during which time we worked to help them live as independently and healthy as possible in the comfort and security of their own home.

The approach taken in the Home Independence Program is now being transitioned into our everyday assessments and client support in the Home and Community Care Program.

Seniors Assistance Fund

The Seniors Assistance Fund (SAF) is an initiative of the City of Melville managed by Care Options. The program is designed to address the unmet needs of seniors living in the Local Government Area of Melville. We assist people with a wide variety of needs, all with the aim of seniors maintaining their safety and independence.

The service is for one-off or short-term assistance. During the financial year, the fund paid out $73,203 for 130 clients. Examples of how the funding has been spent include home modifications, installation of ramps and rails and gutter clean ups.

"We supported 68 people to access the program for up to 13 weeks, during which time we worked to help them live as independently and healthy as possible in the comfort and security of their own home."

"We provide assessment services for people in the community and their carers, linking them to a range of services to meet their needs."

Executive team

Sheilah Cummins

CEO

Play Sheilah's Video

Sheilah joined Care Options as Chief Executive Officer in April 2015. She has over 30 years of experience working in the health, aged and community care fields, 20 of which have been in the capacity of Senior Executive and Deputy CEO roles...

Fiona Duncan

Executive Manager Operational Excellence

Play Fiona's Video

Fiona joined Care Options in August 2007 and has held several roles within the organisation including Community Services Manager, Executive Manager Operations, Project Manager and Acting Chief Executive Officer. Fiona has been integral in driving key projects to improve...

Justin Bunter

Executive Manager Corporate Services

Play Justin's Video

Justin joined Care Options in August 2015 as Corporate Services Manager. This role oversees the HR, Finance, ITC and infrastructure functions of the organisation. He joined Care Options from Greening Australia a national not-for-profit organisation where he was the national CFO...

Louise Forster

Executive Manager Business Development

Play Louise's Video

Louise joined Care Options in June 2016 as the Executive Manager Business Development. Her role oversees Business Development, Marketing, Strategy and the Assessment Services in Western Australia and South Australia with the purpose to drive, retain and grow business opportunities for Care Options to ensure long term viability and sustainability...

Gertie Murphy

Executive Manager Home Care

Play Gertie's Video

Gertie joined Care Options in June 2016 as the Executive Manager Home Care. Overseeing the home care division, her role is to drive and motivate her team to support and enable clients of Care Options to live and participate in their community, while maintaining a quality of life that maximises their potential...

Barbara Powell

Chairperson

Barbara joined the Board in 2005, becoming Chairperson in 2009 and Chairperson of the CEO Remuneration and Review Committee in 2015. Barbara has over 25 years’ experience in community services and development management in local government and currently holds the position of Director, Community Services and Development at the City of Kwinana...

Stuart Fynn

Board member

Stuart joined the Board in September 2015 and has been appointed Vice Chairperson of the Board and Chairperson of the Governance Committee. Stuart has held executive positions in the public, private and not for profit sectors. He currently operates a successful corporate and communications consultancy...

Geoff Brayshaw

AM FCA

Geoff joined the Board in September 2015 and has been appointed Chairperson of the Finance, Audit and Risk Committee. Geoff practiced in the accounting profession for some 35 years prior to his retirement from practice in June 2005. On his retirement from practice in 2005 he was an Audit and Assurance partner and former managing partner of the Perth practice of BDO...

Christine Young

Board member

Christine joined the Board in 2009. Christine has over 25 years’ experience working both in the community services industry and community development fields, both in local government and the not-for-profit sector. Christine is the...

Sue Limbert

Board member

Sue joined the Board in 2004. Sue serves her community in many capacities. Sue is a long time serving officer with the Town of East Fremantle and has gained enormous experience managing the Town’s Home and Community Care (HACC) Program...

Brenton Siviour

ACA, ACG, MICM, DFP, MAICD

Brenton joined the Board in September 2015. Brenton’s key areas of expertise are corporate strategy, financial analysis, business systems, valuations, training and development, insolvency and forensic accounting...

Dr Timothy (Tim) Jeffery

MB BS, MRCOG, FRCOG, FRANZCOG

Tim Jeffery was appointed to the board in September 2015 and was a board member for seven months (due to unforeseen work commitments). Tim is a Doctor practicing obstetrics and gynecology at...

Statement of Comprehensive Income

for the Year Ended 30 June 2016

Statement of Financial Position

As at 30 June 2016

Return to Care Options Website

At Care Options, our mission is to support people to live as independently as possible whilst enabling people to actively participate in their community.

Our mission

Our vision

Values

From the Board

From the CEO

Helping people enjoy life

Jean and Martin How respite saved my sight

Connie and Pierini Home is where the heart is

Clients at the centre of everything we do

Overall, how satisfied are you with the service you receive from Care Options?

Do you believe Care Options services give you a better quality of life?

How likely are you to recommend Care Options to other people?

I am actively involved in all decisions about my care and believe my services are tailored to my needs.

Quality safety

Home Care Common Standards, Australian Aged Care Quality Agency (AACQA)

Key projects

Culture Development

As staff members of Care Options, we will:

In focus

Home Independence Program

Seniors Assistance Fund

Executive team

Sheilah Cummins

CEO

Fiona Duncan

Executive Manager Operational Excellence

Justin Bunter

Executive Manager Corporate Services

Louise Forster

Executive Manager Business Development

Gertie Murphy

Executive Manager Home Care

Board members

Barbara Powell

Chairperson

Stuart Fynn

Board member

Geoff Brayshaw

AM FCA

Christine Young

Board member

Sue Limbert

Board member

Brenton Siviour

ACA, ACG, MICM, DFP, MAICD

Dr Timothy (Tim) Jeffery

MB BS, MRCOG, FRCOG, FRANZCOG

Financial Statements

Statement of Comprehensive Income

for the Year Ended 30 June 2016

Statement of Financial Position

As at 30 June 2016