What is the Restorative Care Pathway?

The Restorative Care Pathway is a time-limited program (up to 16 weeks) focused on restoring function, building capacity, and preventing further decline through intensive allied health and/or nursing care. It’s not about providing ongoing support but instead helping older people recover after a setback or adjust to new health challenges so they can continue living independently.

Unlike traditional home care, this model is goal-oriented and multidisciplinary, with services built around the participant’s specific recovery needs.

Goals of the pathway

This care stream is built around four key aims:

• Restore ability to perform daily activities.
• Help manage newly emerging or worsening conditions.
• Delay or avoid long-term care needs or residential care.
• Equip participants with tools to maintain their independence over time.

It reflects a growing emphasis in aged care on reablement, where support is not just about assistance, but about building strength and resilience.

Multidisciplinary and clinically informed care

At the heart of this approach is multidisciplinary teamwork. Participants receive care from a coordinated group of health professionals- commonly physiotherapists, occupational therapists, nurses, and dietitians working together toward shared goals.

While the inclusion of a GP is recommended, services covered under Medicare (like GP visits) are not funded through the pathway.

Providers must have protocols in place for clinical documentation, care planning, communication, and outcome tracking, ensuring the care delivered is coordinated and effective.

Who can access it?

Access is determined through an aged care assessment. To be eligible, a person must:

• Have a time-limited clinical or functional need.
• Be capable and willing to engage in a recovery-focused plan.
• Not require end-of-life or permanent residential care.

Each participant can receive up to two funding units per year (valued at $6,000 each), which can be used for separate episodes or one extended one (up to $12,000 total). There must be a 90-day gap between separate episodes.

Restorative care can be delivered alongside ongoing Support at Home services, provided there’s no overlap or duplication.

What does care management involve?

Restorative care management is more intensive than regular care management. It includes:

• Joint goal setting with the participant.
• Coordinating a range of clinicians and providers.
• Conducting regular reviews and adjusting the plan as needed.
• Supporting participants to sustain their gains after the episode.

While there’s no fixed percentage for care management spending, it must be proportionate and reasonable, with services agreed upon in the support plan.

Ending the episode: What comes next?

Toward the end of the 16-week episode, the care team works with the participant to develop an exit plan, which may involve transitioning to ongoing Support at Home services. If the participant needs further support beyond the available budget, providers can request a Support Plan Review for additional funding.

The goal is always to ensure a smooth transition and continuity of care, supporting older people as they move from intensive recovery back to daily life.

The Restorative Care Pathway is a forward-looking model that brings clinical expertise and person-centred care together to help older Australians regain function and confidence. By focusing on recovery, prevention, and independence, it offers a more dynamic, empowering form of aged care. For participants, it offers a clear path to staying well and staying home.