Care Centre FAQ’s

If you have any other queries or would like to discuss any of the questions below please contact:
Francis Gacad (Admissions Manager) on 09 585 4018

What are the different levels of care that St Andrew’s Village offers?
St Andrew’s Village offer a full continuum of permanent residential care options on our site, as follows:

Swing Beds (can be either Rest Home or Hospital, as required) – 30 beds
Dementia ‘Memory Care’ (43 Beds)
Hospital (78 Beds)
A dedicated palliative care unit run in conjunction with the team at Dove Hospice (3 beds)

To be eligible for a permanent care bed, you will need to be formally assessed as requiring full time care by the needs assessment team at Auckland District Health Board.

We also offer a range of short stay and respite options together with orthopaedic rehabilitation programme run in conjunction with Auckland Hospital.

How can I arrange for an assessment to be undertaken?
Assessments can be arranged in a number of ways:

You can ask your local GP to refer you to a needs assessor.
If you are currently in hospital, then the hospital team will make an appointment with a needs assessor (if required).
By phoning ADHB directly on 09 367 0000 and asking to be put through to the Needs Assessment Team.

You can also ask a social worker or an organisation such as Age Concern on 04 801 9338 or email national.office@ageconcern.org.nz to contact an Assessor for you.

How much will it cost to stay in the Care Centre?
The government set the prices annually (by region) for each of the three main levels of care, i.e. Rest Home, Dementia and Hospital.

Therefore, the price for a standard room will be the same at any facility across the Auckland Region. The only price variable would be if a resident wishes to choose a premium room, in which case there would be an additional premium charge.

A full list of charges is available from the Admissions Manager.

What is the difference between a premium and a standard room?
Across St Andrew’s we have a wide range of premium and standard rooms.

Premiums rooms are categorised based upon a variety of reasons, ranging from size, en-suites, enhanced outlooks with external decks, plus internal fixtures and fittings such as Smart TVs, through to specialist clinical areas where the staffing ratio would be higher than normal for that particular level of care.

Across the site, the additional premium charges currently range from $50 to $115 per day. These premium charges are fixed on the day of entry and will not increase for the duration of your time with us.

For those residents who simply want a standard room option, approximately 40% of our total beds are allocated as standard rooms and so there is plenty of choice for incoming residents.

Can I change between premium and standard rooms after entry?
Yes, of course, subject to the following criteria.

If you initially chose a Premium room on entry into St Andrew’s, the government contract under which we operate, will allow you after a period of 6 months, to give us 3 months’ notice that you wish to transfer to a standard room.

This means that if you choose a premium room at the outset, you are committed to paying that fee for at least the first 9 months.

If you do choose to transfer to a standard room at any point, the additional premium fees will cease at the end of the three month notice period and we will work with you to organise your transfer to a standard room as soon as one becomes available.

If you initially moved into a standard room and wish to transfer to a premium room, this can be done at any time subject to availability. You will then be committed to the same 9 month time frame as outlined above, should you ever want to subsequently move back to a standard room again.

How do I know if I am eligible for a fee subsidy?
Some residents may be eligible for a government subsidy towards the cost of their care. This is based upon a means test.

For more details, please either contact the Social Worker at the hospital or Senior Line on 0800 725 463 or go to https://www.seniorline.org.nz/.

Can we retain our own doctor?
Technically, yes, you can.

However, this does not really work in practice as there are very few community based GPs who would agree to providing 24/7 care and making on site visits.

If you are moving into our care centre as a permanent admission, we strongly recommend that you transfer to one of our panel of visiting Doctors or Nurse Practitioner, who visit our site on rotation throughout the week, and also provide emergency 24/7 cover as required.

Can I leave the site to go out with family and friends?

Of course.

Please discuss this with the Clinical Team first, so that they know what is planned and can provide the relevant advice around Covid safeguards and protocols.

Do you offer physiotherapy?
St Andrew’s Village has a well-equipped Physiotherapy department located in the main Care Centre. Evaluation and planning of treatment is assessed by a consulting Registered Physiotherapist and we have a team of trained Physiotherapy Assistants to carry out the treatment plan.

What are the visiting hours?
Due to the ongoing pandemic, visiting arrangements are currently via a booking system with dedicated time slots available in each clinical area daily.

When is the main meal served?
Our main meal is the evening meal which is served around 5.00pm.

Are there church services available?
Our regular church services are currently on hold and will resume under the “Green” Covid settings.

Are activities provided?
Yes. There are a wide range of activities and entertainment for residents each week, which are conducted in both smaller and larger groups.

We also host a range of themed activities throughout the year to coincide with special calendar events such as Mother’s Day etc.

Can I bring my own furniture?
St Andrew’s Village supply a bed, bedside table and an armchair.

We are more than happy if the resident wishes to bring their own chair and a small piece of furniture. There are also fixed shelving units in each room for you to display any personal ornaments, photographs or other memorabilia that you would like in order to help make the room feel ‘your own’.

Do you supply a television?
No. We would recommend that you bring in a small TV (no larger than 32”) that we can set up for you.

Our ‘Premium Plus’ rooms are the only ones that are already fitted with a smart TV, and these are linked to streaming services so that you have a wider choice of viewing options.

Do you supply a telephone?
No. You will need to contact a Telecom provider such as Spark or Vodafone etc., if you wish to have a land line installed. All of our rooms have a phone jack point available for that purpose, if required.

Can I have the NZ Herald delivered?
Yes. Contact NZ Herald directly to add your order to the bulk delivery which they drop off to our care centre reception each day. For the residents who have ordered the Herald, this will then be delivered to their room by our staff.

Do you have a laundry service?
Yes. However our washing machines are industrial machines and so we ask all residents to only bring easy care garments with them. If any resident wishes to have delicate or woollen clothing, then they will need to arrange for a family member to take those items home to launder. All items of clothing must be labelled and we offer a labelling service, if required.

Do we need to bring in bed linen and towels?
No. Sheets and towels are supplied but you may like to bring in a bedspread, if you have a particular favourite.

How do I give feedback or make a complaint?
We welcome feedback on our services in the form of suggestions, compliments, concerns and complaints as they help us to keep improving our services. Compliment/Feedback and Concern/Complaint forms are available at Reception and all Nurses stations and when completed can be handed in to Reception.