If you need emergency services, please contact 000
Are you feeling burnt out? Consider aged care respite.
Looking for a rewarding career in aged care and ready to start now?
View our current retirement living homes for sale.
Search
Contact Us
Close
14 locations across Victoria
Principles of Montessori
Tailored to individual interests
All your questions answered
Government or privately funded
Government-funded support
Entry-level home care services
Launching 1 November 2025
Services to keep you independent
One on one care and support
Support to help you stay at home
Allied health support services
Everyone deserves a break
Connect with others
Help to access support services
If you care for someone, we’re here
Maintain your quality of life
Here for people of all ages
Take a break and have some fun
Get all your questions answered
Independent living for over 55s
Welcoming and safe communities
Everyone deserves a home
Our latest properties available
Inner Melbourne communities
Camberwell
Deepdene
Kew
Hawthorn
Toorak
Suburban communities
Clayton
Point Cook
Bacchus Marsh
Pakenham
Greensborough
Torquay
Friendly and welcoming villages
Kyneton
Trentham
Eltham
Brunswick West
Support for children and adults
Take a step to paid employment
Work at a cafe
Gardening and maintenance
Learn woodwork skills
Work at a VMCH Op Shop
Centre and community programs
Skills, confidence and friendships
For children and teenagers
Supported co-living
Accommodation across Victoria
In your home and community
Get the best out of your plan
For babies, children and young people
Allied health practice
Participate in everyday tasks
Better communication skills
Address challenging behaviours
Shop from our social enterprises
Coffee with purpose
Pieces handcrafted by participants
Buy pre-loved goods
Helping people with disability
Independence and support
Funding to achieve your goals
Help us improve
Menu
Back
Enter your search term below
4 May 2018
An innovative tool is helping aged care residents living with dementia to be heard, and making their end of life journey meaningful to them.
May 20-26 is Palliative Care Week, raising awareness and understanding about palliative care in the Australian community.
Not-for-profit aged and disability organisation Villa Maria Catholic Homes (VMCH) has seen some fantastic results for residents with dementia since using the ConnecTo screening tool this year.
Developed by national peak body Meaningful Ageing Australia, and based on the work of Dr. Julie Fletcher, ConnecTo is a flexible spiritual screening tool used by Pastoral Care practitioners at VMCH to measure what gives a person’s life meaning and purpose by identifying their spiritual and social interests.
VMCH Pastoral Care Practitioner Sr. Lorraine Testa has made the ConnecTo tool more accessible for people living with dementia, by using images and behavioural observations.
Sr. Lorraine will present her innovation, along with Meaningful Ageing Australia CEO Ilsa Hampton, at the Spiritual Care Australia conference on May 7.
“Understanding people’s likes and dislikes assists us to provide meaningful care not only as they transition into aged care, but during their stay, and then at the end of their life. For example, if they like classical music, we make sure that’s playing during the period of palliative care, or if their primary focus is their family, we’ll have photos of their loved ones around. It’s a holistic approach to care, which is really exciting.”
Sr. Lorraine (pictured above) said using images was key to help identifying the interests of a person who may have lost their speech or reverted back to their native tongue.
“Just because someone can’t talk doesn’t mean they can’t give you information. This tool is about connecting with them in an emotional way, and reading their body language. It’s a fallacy to say people who have dementia will not be able to illicit a memory from an image or music.”
Sr. Lorraine said another aspect that made the tool so special was that it meant Pastoral Care was now being recognised as a point of relevance in people’s lives.
A March 2018 study on 132 VMCH aged care residents by Australian Catholic University found:
“We now have the evidence there to back up how important Pastoral Care is,” Sr. Lorraine said. “It’s also important to note that a lot of people associate Pastoral Care with religion, but that’s not the case. While Pastoral Care might identify the importance of religion in someone’s life, it also looks at so many other facets to what gives that person’s life meaning like their family, friends or hobbies.”
Sr. Lorraine said she was “honoured” to present at the conference and represent the 13 VMCH Pastoral Care Practitioners who are doing an amazing job”.
VMCH CEO Sonya Smart, who is also a Meaningful Ageing Australia Board Member, said she was proud to lead an organisation focussed on delivering high quality pastoral and spiritual care.
“Tools like ConnecTo allow us to engage and connect with what gives older people meaning in their lives. We’ve seen already some great outcomes for residents who have benefited from their needs and choices being acknowledged and met in a way that is respectful and meaningful, particularly when receiving palliative care, which is so important to having a full life.”
More news articles in Mission
Locating the information you need has become far easier with our useful guide. Answer a few simple questions and you will be on your way.
Not sure where to start?
Contact us
→
Who needs our services?
Our Digital & Marketing Agency - ID Digital Agency
Locating the information you need has become far easier with our useful guide.
Answer a few simple questions and you will be on your way.