In December 2023, Comcare Trust were announced as the new provider to develop and provide contemporary intensive community support services, including housing to enable people to move out of hospital.
Why was this needed?
The Time for Change – Te Hurihanga review highlighted the need to support tāngata whaiora (a person seeking health) with high and complex needs currently living in Ward 11 at Wakari Hospital in Dunedin to be able to move from the hospital to live in the community. The review identified that people were living in the service because of a lack of appropriate support options in the community.
What’s happened so far?
Comcare have been setting up their new service in Dunedin and working closely with the Ward 11 team to prepare tāngata whaiora for their move into the community. The first tāngata whaiora moved out of hospital into the community June 2023.
Tāngata whaiora have a support package that is flexible to meet their individual needs. The intensive support service includes: -
- Accommodation.
- Home-based support services.
- Therapeutic support and interventions.
- Mentoring. Support with family connections.
- Social connectedness.
- Tenancy assistance.
- Medication support/management.
- Assistance with activities of daily living.
- Interventions focused on maintaining accommodation.
- Support with developing and maintaining wellbeing plans
- Clinical support from a multidisciplinary Te Whatu Ora team
Next steps
A project looking at how providers of services and Te What Ora Southern wants services and relationships to flow is in its early stages.
The project's vision is to aim towards a flexible, responsive and equitable service that is provided in a place and at a pace determined by tāngata whaiora, who remain at the centre of what we do.
