How to Choose Aged Care Providers in NZ

Aug 18

Most people start this search on a difficult week. Unexpected circumstances befell your mum or dad. It could be a fall, a diagnosis, a trip home from the hospital.

Suddenly, you find yourself looking for people and resources that you wish can help, and it has to be available as soon as possible. Search results for aged care providers NZ wide fill your search with mentions of rest homes and retirement villages. A search for "care providers near me", does not yield the results you expect. Most families want something else entirely: someone reliable who comes to the house consistently.

Quick Summary

Aged care providers in New Zealand fall into two broad categories. Residential providers operate rest homes, where the law requires them to be certified. In-home providers send carers to your parent's own house, guided by their contracts.

Knowing what your parents need is the key in choosing the right provider. Know how the provider vets its carers, get the scope of their work in writing, and ask who you can call when something goes wrong.

What is an aged care provider in NZ?

An aged care provider is any organisation that helps older people with daily care. Some come to your parent's home. Others run a place your parent moves into. Aged care NZ wide runs from an hour of home help a week, and may also include hospital-level care.

Providing home care for elderly parents is starting to be in high demand. It is inevitable, considering that about 900,000 New Zealanders are now aged 65 and over. That number grows by more than 500 people every week. The market is crowded, and preparing for your parents' future needs will require considerable research.

To begin with, there are three types of providers that you can look into:

Residential providers offer a place to live. Rest homes, hospital-level care, and dementia units belong to this category. Your parent moves in this type of arrangement.
Retirement villages sell or licence housing. Some have a care facility attached, but the village itself is a kind of housing.
In-home providers bring the care to your parent at home. Carers and registered nurses visit your parent's house. Your parent carries on living independently in familiar surroundings.

Personal Assistance is categorised in the third group. Our comparison of in-home care, respite and rest homes covers the differences in cost, independence, and level of care.

How are aged care providers funded and regulated in NZ?

Providers are regulated depending on their category. Rest homes, for example, must meet the national standard. The Ngā Paerewa Health and Disability Services Standard NZS 8134:2021 provides the regulation that ensures elderly people in NZ receive the care that they are entitled to. The Ministry of Health, in turn, regularly publishes audit reports on rest home certification.

Home and community support services work differently. The Ministry calls the same standard suitable for these services, but not compulsory. A provider holding a Health NZ or ACC contract goes through an audit. A provider serving only private clients may choose to have an audit, or they may not. Certification offers the baseline, not proof of high-quality care.

How do you arrange care, and who pays for it?

Two routes lead into aged care support services in Aotearoa New Zealand, and families often consider them both. The funded route starts with a needs assessment through your local Needs Assessment and Service Coordination team, or NASC. The private route starts with a phone call.

	Funded route	Private route
First step	A GP or family member refers you to NASC	You ring the provider
Assessment	A needs assessor runs an interRAI assessment	The provider writes the care plan
Who visits	Support workers from the contracted agency	Carers from the provider you chose
Who picks	You name an agency, or take the NASC suggestion	You choose
Timing	Contact in two days, then up to 20 working days	Usually days
Cost	No charge if your parent qualifies	You pay, usually by the hour

Health NZ funds home support for older people while ACC funds support after an injury. Whaikaha funds it for people with disabilities. Whatever the case, an assessment is required.

Even if your parent may not be eligible for government-funded support, you can still pay an agency directly. That agency then writes the care plan subject to the same assessment.

One point worth knowing here. You can choose which agency supports your parent, or ask for a carer they already know. Better to tell the needs assessor about this during the assessment.

What questions should you ask an aged care provider?

Ask about the carer, more than about the company. The quality of home care services rests on who turns up at the door. The questions that separate providers are operational. Government guidance tells families to raise concerns straight away. That only works if you know who to call.

Ask how carers are vetted and trained. Police checks and first aid training should be standard, and confirmed without hesitation.
Ask how many different carers your parent will see. Continuity matters enormously, particularly with dementia. A rotating roster undoes much of the benefit.
Ask how the match is made. Matching on personality and routine holds a relationship far longer than matching on availability.
Ask who you can speak to when something goes wrong. A named person who answers the phone beats a service level agreement.
Ask what the rate covers. Travel, public holidays, minimum visit lengths and notice periods belong in writing.

How do you compare home care providers?

Start with three or four providers. Searching home care companies or agencies near you returns a relatively long list. Narrow as much as possible.

It is good to ask your GP or your NASC team for any guidance that they can provide. You can also check directories such as Eldernet and Mycare. Agencies can be commercial or not-for-profit. Neither type automatically wins.

Check their service area. Ask any in-home care agency whether it already has carers in your parent's suburb.
Check the range of care that they offer. One provider can cover everything from company at home to nursing and palliative care. Your parent never has to start again with a new agency.
Check who owns and runs it. In owner-operated services, the person setting the standards is the person you can readily call.

Why families choose Personal Assistance

Brigid Chunn and Jackie McDiarmid founded Personal Assistance and still run it themselves. We are an in-home aged care service, supporting around 40 families a week.

The people we support stay in their own homes, maintaining their own routines. The directors choose every carer themselves. They run police checks and confirm first aid training. Then they match the carer to the person, not to a roster.

The service covers company at home and personal care, and also covers dementia support, 24/7 live-in care, nursing and palliative care. Registered nurses and a dedicated palliative lead handle clinical needs.

Personalised care plans change as your parent's needs change. Regular updates give you precious peace of mind when you live in another city far from your mum or dad.

Frequently asked questions

How do I choose an aged care provider in NZ?

Work out whether your parent needs residential care or care at home. Then compare three or four providers on carer vetting, continuity, service range and accountability. If funded support may apply, request a NASC needs assessment at the same time.

What questions should I ask an aged care provider?

Ask how carers are police-checked and trained, and how many different carers your parent will see. Ask how the match is made, who answers the phone when there is a problem, and what the hourly rate covers.

How are aged care providers funded and regulated in NZ?

Rest homes hold a certificate under the Health and Disability Services (Safety) Act 2001. Auditors check them against the Ngā Paerewa standard. Home and community support providers face an audit if they hold a Health NZ or ACC contract. Funding comes from Health NZ, from ACC after an injury, or from Whaikaha for disabled people.

How do I compare home care providers?

Use the same checklist for every provider. Does it already cover your parent's suburb? Can it grow as their needs grow? Who owns it, and what does the written agreement say?

Care starts with a conversation

A short conversation will tell you more than another evening of reading. Call Brigid on 021 855 925 and Jackie on 021 0252 9448 respectively. You can also drop a message through our contact page.

Get your first free appointment with no obligation. Just a conversation about what can help.