Traditionally an area with minimal aged care services, the District Council of Yankalilla in South Australia, and its community, embarked on a project resulting in innovative health care and an aged care complex.
Yankalilla is located some 70 kilometres south of Adelaide. It covers an area of 775 square kilometres and has a population of 3,800.
The new Yankalilla Centre provides an extensive range of services on the one site, previously unavailable within the district. It has a 60 bed facility which is funded and managed by the Aged Care and Housing Group Inc. (ACH Group) of South Australia. The Commonwealth Government approved the Yankalilla Centre in January 2001 and the first stage was ready for occupancy by July 2002. The final stages are now being filled.
The Centre comprises low and high care areas constructed in four groupings of 15 accommodation units. Each room has its own private ensuite and the internal development has been very much along the homelike model. Alongside the aged care facility is the medical centre, which has in excess of four general practitioners and an accident and emergency centre.
“The District Council of Yankalilla has been the main driver behind this project, offering the ACH Group the incentive of a parcel of land suitable for the Centre and considerable support through the process of planning, developing and building the Centre,” said Jim Raggatt, General Manager Residential Care Division, ACH Group. “Council remains quite close to the development with representatives of the Council’s Aged Care Committee forming a close liaison group.”
The ACH Group gained $385,000 in Federal and State Health Grants to develop the medical centre, with the capital cost of the residential portion of the development, $5 million, drawn from the ACH Group’s resources.
“The development of the facility linked to a medical centre has been very advantageous to the local community and will have an outcome for the local citizens, minimising travel needs outside the local area to seek aged care services and general medical attention,” Jim Raggatt said.
For further information contact Jim Raggatt on (08) 8414 4666.
