Advocare welcomes contact from journalists and media outlet representatives seeking information or comment on relevant issues impacting older Australians or the aged care sector.
Phone: 08 9479 7566 Email: Executive Officer, marionl@advocare.org.au
Recent activity:
August 2024
28 August: CEO Louise Johnstone Forster is interviewed on Radio Curtin FM’s afternoon program by Jenni Seaton to discuss Advocare’s new role as Seniors Peak Body WA, protection strategries from elder abuse and key issues for older people.
27 August: CEO Louise Johnstone Forster is interviewed on Radio ABC Perth afternoons by Amber Cunningham to discuss Advocare’s new role as Seniors Peak Body WA, elder abuse and key issues for older people.
24 August: Interim CEO Erin Timu talks to The West Australian’s, Kaylee Cranley about the benefits of creating intergenerational living opportunities in the article ‘Community one and for all’ about the new Arbour development in the South West (p.2).
19 August: CEO Louise Johnstone Forster talks to The West Australian’s Nick Bruining on elder abuse in the Money section for this article ‘Protection measures for powerful EPAs’ (p42).
19 August: Louise Johnstone Forster talks to The West Australian’s Nick Bruining on elder abuse ‘Rise in elder abuse shows need for EPA register’ (p42).
10 August: Regional advocate, Christine, talks to Have a Go News about elder abuse in its August edition. ‘Elder abuse – don’t become a statistic’ (p315).
10 July: Regional advocate Karen, features in this Mid West Times article ‘Seniors Action: informative Advocare presentation, pairs bowl tournament the highlights’ to mark World Elder Abuse Awareness Day.
June 2024 (WEAAD)
27 June: Denmark Bulletin highlights World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD) activity and the presentation given by Great Southern advocate, Christine.
25 June: CEO Louise Johnstone Forster talks to GWN/7 on low vaccination rates in aged care facilities in the Great Southern region.
17 June: CEO Louise Johnstone Forster features in the Sound Telegraph’s article on elder abuse, ‘Community awareness key to stopping abuse of the elderly’ (digital).
17 June: Opinion piece in The West Australian from CEO Louise Johnstone Forster, ‘Community awareness key to stopping abuse of the elderly’ (p54).
15 June: Opinion piece in the The West Australian, a joint piece with Bankwest with quotes from CEO Louise Johnstone Forster, ‘One in four suffer elder abuse in WA’ (p3).
26 March: Radio ABC Goldfields, ‘Aged Care worker payrise’
1 February: The Canning Examiner publishes the article ‘Watchdog clocks up 100K cases’ in response to Advocare’s media release on our 100k case milestone on p.14. Read the article here.
31 January: CEO Louise Forster features in an opinion piece published by The West Australian newspaper titled, ‘We all benefit from an aged care system centred on dignity’ on page 41, and on their digital platform. Read the article here.
December 2023
15 December: CEO Louise Forster features in an opinion piece published by The West Australian titled, ‘Give the gift of your company this Christmas.’ Read the article here.
18 September: Our elder abuse specialist, Shawnee Van Poeteren speaks with Curtin FM’s Jenny Seaton about elder abuse and the impact of coercive control. Listen to the interview below.
7 September: Our elder abuse specialist, Shawnee Van Poeteren, is featured in her opinion piece published by The West Australian titled ‘Private Abuse Too Common’ on p.42. Read the article here.
14 June: Shawnee Van Poeteren speaks to Alice Murray, Channel 7 Perth News, commenting on elder abuse and dementia. The interview was connected to the indecent assault of an aged care facility resident in a Perth metro facility the previous week.
10 June: Shawnee Van Poeteren chats with breakfast presenter, Stephen Cenatiempo, on radio 2CC Canberra as to why elder abuse isn’t talked about.
21 June: CEO Louise Forster takes part in the ‘Aged Care Spotlight Forum’, hosted by Nadia Mitsopoulos in front of a live audience in the studios of ABC Perth to explore what the future of aged care looks like in WA. Listen to the audio here.
13 June: A joint article in Inside Ageing by guest writers Advocare CEO, Louise Forster and Russell Bricknell, CEO of Perth aged care provider on their views ahead of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day on June 15. ‘Combating elder abuse and safeguarding our seniors – Call to Action!’ Read the article here.
This article was also published by The West Australian on 15 June.
9 June: CEO Louise Forster spoke with Curtin FM’s Jenny Seaton about the current aged care model and how it might serve older people better in the future. Listen to the interview below:
1 June: CEO Louise Forster features in an opinion piece published by The West Australian titled ‘Aged care model is broken’ Read the article here.
23 May: CEO, Louise Forster is invited by Channel 7, Canberra to comment on the closing of aged care facilities in Perth and around the country (appearance starts at 00.06). View news clip here.
4 May: CEO, Louise Forster is invited by Channel 7’s Jeremy Frost to comment on the federal pre-Budget announcement of a pay rise for aged care workers. View news clip here.
14 April: CEO Louise Forster comments to The West Australian on the closure announcement for a number of aged care facilities in Perth. Read the article here.
13 April: CEO Louise Forster’s interview with Piper Duffy from the Western Independent on the intersection between AI and aged care from a health and social isolation remedy perspective. Read the interview here.
13 April: CEO Louise Forster comments to Channel 7 News on the closure announcement for a number of aged care facilities in Perth. View the news item here.
29 March: CEO Louise Forster spoke with Curtin FM’s Jenny Seaton about the barriers to accessing aged care services in WA based on our blog published. Listen to the interview here.
27 March: CEO Louise Forster was asked to comment by Channel 10’s Brendan Crew, about the article in The West Australian discussing the new system to triage ambulance calls coming from aged care facilities.
25 March: CEO Louise Forster spoke to weekend presenter Paul Cook on ABC Radio in the Great Southern about Advocare’s general service offering.
21 March 2023: CEO Louise Forster was interviewed as part of a conversation about older people getting married again/later held on radio ABC Perth with Nadia Mitsopoulos. Interview starts at 2:19 (this link may expire). Listen to the conversation here.
December 2022
8 December: CEO Louise Forster features in an opinion piece article in The West Australian on being aware of the impact of loneliness in the community, and how to make someone’s Christmas, if they’re at risk of loneliness. Read the article here.
October 2022
26 October: CEO Louise Forster chats with Curtin FM’s presenter, Jenny Seaton on the challenges and impact of the current housing crisis, particularly on older people.
Listen to the interview here.
11 October: CEO Louise Forster features in an opinion piece article in The West Australian on housing insecurity facing older West Australians.
Read the article on p.43 here.
August 2022
3 August: Community Care Review publishes an article on Advocare’s expansion into the Kimberley and the challenges faced. ‘Seniors rights service Advocare moves into Broome.’
Read the article here.
1 August: CEO Louise Forster chats with ABC radio Kimberley Pilbara presenter Verity Gorman about current challenges for local people in regional areas around workforce, housing and services for older people.
July 2022
21 July: CEO, Louise Forster, talks with 3AW radio presenter, Tom Elliott, on ‘unconscious ageism’ against older people in our society.
Listen to the interview here, below (starts at 00.16).
June 2022
13 June: CEO, Louise Forster, comments on the impact of financial abuse of older people in The West Australian to coincide with World Elder Abuse Awareness Day on 15 June.
Read the article here.
7 June: CEO, Louise Forster, talks to Channel 7 News about the effect of ageism in responding to abuse against older people. It was in response to the case of the 65-year-old man allegedly assaulted and robbed at a retirement village in Hamilton Hill on Sunday 5 June.
View the video grab here.
May 2022
9 May: CEO Louise Forster talks with drive presenter, Andrew Collins on ABC WA Regional radio about the government’s Seniors Strategy process and shares thoughts on the three main areas for attention in regard to older people’s needs.
Listen to the interview here, below. Note: this link will expire after 7 days.
April 2022
6 April: CEO Louise Forster speaks with morning presenter Roz on Great Southern FM 100.9, Albany while she visits the region to chat about Advocare’s services.
March 2022
18 March: Specialist Advocate in the Great Southern, Christine Zambonetti, talks to Denmark FM Community Radio’s Sue Howard about Advocare’s services and how to get in contact.
16 March: CEO Louise Forster speaks with Jenny Seaton on Curtin Radio about Advocare’s services and touches on current questions regarding guardianship issues following ABC TV’s Four Corners program.
Listen to the interview here, below.
February 2022
16 February: CEO Louise Forster talks to The Kimberley Echo newspaper during a regional visit to Kununurra, Halls Creek and Warmun about how the challenges of humbugging and inflexible services have led to Advocare’s expansion into the Kimberley.
Read the article here.
14 February: CEO Louise Forster comments on visitation rights in Perth’s aged care facilities during the current COVID-19 Omicron outbreak to ABC News Perth (video commences at 2.02mins).
View the television news story here.
Read the online article here.
December 2021
21 December: CEO Louise Forster has an opinion piece published in The West Australian highlighting the impact of loneliness on people’s wellbeing, and the strategies we can use to combat it this Festive Season.
Read the article here.
Advocate, Shawnee Van Poeteren speaks with Jo McManus on Radio 6PR to talk about loneliness at this time of year and how to combat it, highlighting the importance of volunteering as one of the key strategies (runs 10:54).
Listen to the segment here.
8 December: The Canning Examiner runs an article on the value of volunteering following a visit by CEO Louise Forster and Volunteer Coordinator Navodini Withanage to see firsthand how valuable the new friendship was between volunteer, Ian Common, and his client, Len.
Read the article here.
November 2021
22 November: CEO Louise Forster speaks with presenter Kerry Scott on Radio Fremantle. They discussed Advocare’s services and particularly focused on the Community Visitors Scheme that recruits volunteers and links them with older people in need of some company.
Listen to the audio recording (47:40 to 55:55 mins)
18 November: During a visit to the Kimberley, Advocate Erica Wright speaks with presenter Eddie Williams on ABC Kimberley about Advocare’s services and the importance of its approach of walking alongside the older person to support their journey.
Listen to the audio recording (49:00 to 54:00 mins)
16 November: CEO Louise Forster provides comments to ABC Goldfields regarding a proposal by Amana Living in Kalgoorlie to introduce an incentive-based recruitment drive for aged care staff.
Read the article here.
October 2021
14 October: CEO Louise Forster, was a guest on Nadia Mitsopolous’s Morning Show talking about the ways Advocare can support older people experiencing elder abuse or seeking independent support with resolving issues with aged care services.
Listen here (52:35 to 1:01 mins)
4 October: CEO Louise Forster wrote an opinion piece for The West Australian highlighting the impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on social isolation and loneliness.
Read the article here.
September 2021
CEO Louise Forster caught up with Jenny Seaton (Curtin Radio) to talk about the impact of COVID on Elder Abuse.
CEO Louise Forster, wrote an opinion piece for The West Australian, highlighting the alarming increase in elder abuse that has been enabled by the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Read the article here.
August 2021
CEO Louise Forster, caught up with ABC to talk about elder abuse.
June 2021 World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (15 June)
ABC Kimberley: As part of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD) on 15 June, our advocate Shawnee spoke with Ed Cowlishaw from ABC Kimberley Pilbara Mornings to raise awareness about the prevalence of elder abuse in our community. Shawnee also explained what elder abuse is, and how Advocare’s team of experienced advocates can provide support to older people and community members through advocacy, information and education, and the free and confidential WA Elder Abuse Helpline.
Listen to the interview here
Media Statement: As part of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD) on 15 June, Advocare released a media statement calling on all Western Australians to be more aware and responsive to incidents of elder abuse. The statement also discusses ways older people can protect themselves from elder abuse and the various services and supports available to them.
Read the media statement here.
6IX: Our CEO, Etta Palumbo, spoke with John “Burgo” Burgess from 6IX about the need for elder abuse and the mistreatment of older people to be on everyone’s radar ahead of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD) on June 15. Etta also explained the role of an advocate at Advocare, the types of elder abuse we see, what makes older people vulnerable to elder abuse and how Advocare can provide free and confidential support to older West Australians experiencing, or at risk of experiencing, elder abuse.
Listen to the radio interview here
Goolarri Broome: Our Advocate Shawnee spoke with Sandy Dunn from Goolarri Media in Broome about Advocare’s services for older people.
Listen to the radio interview
Senior Newspaper: World Elder Abuse Awareness Day coverage in the Senior paper, including an interview with our CEO, Ms Etta Palumbo (Page 3).
Read the digital version here (Page 3, cover page, Page 25).
ABC Kimberley: Our Navigator, Erica Wright talked to the ABC Kimberley about the free aged care navigation service we provide.
May 2021
We welcome the increased $94 million additional investment in aged care advocacy announced in the Federal Budget this month.
Read our media statement here.
April 2021
Our Navigator, Erica, joined Wangki Radio to talk about their upcoming trip to Fitzroy, the services Advocare offer, and in particular, the Navigators trial.
Listen to the radio interview below.
April 2021
Royal Commissioners, the Honourable Tony Pagone QC and Lynelle Briggs AO presented the Final Report of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety to the Governor-General, His Excellency, General the Honourable David Hurley AC DSC (Retd) on 26 February 2021. It was tabled on 1 March 2021.
The Older Persons Advocacy Network (OPAN) released a media statement outlining that the Royal Commission supports the transformation of the aged care system, whereby older peoples’ rights are the focus.
Read the Final Report here
Read OPAN’s media statement here
February 2021
Erica, our Specialist Aged Care Navigator for the North-West region, spoke with Sandy Dann from Goolarri Media about how our Aged Care Navigators can assist older members of the regional community to access aged care services, and understand what services might be available to improve their day-to-day lives and remain living at home more independently for as long as possible.
February 2021
Advocare has appointed Ms Etta Palumbo as Chief Executive Officer.
Ms Palumbo will commence in the role in March at a time when demand for Advocare’s advocacy services over issues around elder abuse and the rights of older people in aged care homes is at an all-time high after steadily increasing in recent years.
February 2021
Advocare responded to a 7News report on allegations of abuse at a Perth residential aged care facility.
Anyone concerned about their aged care services at home or in a facility should contact Advocare on 1800 655 566.
January 2021
Advocare’s Acting CEO, Justine Martyr, spoke with Nine News following the deaths of two residents at the Nedlands residential aged care facility, under investigation of alleged elder abuse.
Justine explained “we all must learn from these types of incidents”, and it was important abuse of older Australians is discussed.
Watch the Nine News report here
January 2021
Advocare’s Acting CEO, Justine Martyr, spoke with Geoff Hutchison from the ABC Perth Drive program in relation to reports of alleged mistreatment of older residents in a residential aged care facility in Nedlands. Justine explains the role of Advocare by providing free information, advocacy and support to older people and their families in the WA community.
Also featured in this segment is an interview with Frances Veltman, the daughter of one of the alleged elderly victims at the aged care facility in Nedlands.
Listen to the full Drive program here – (Justine’s interview with Geoff at 1hour:50mins)
Listen to the interview with Frances Veltman here
January 2021
Advocare’s Acting CEO, Justine Martyr, and CEO of the Older Person’s Advocacy Network (OPAN), Craig Gear, were interviewed in response to reports of alleged mistreatment of older residents in a local Perth residential aged care facility.
Advocare’s experienced advocates are attending the aged care facility this week to support residents and their families.
Read the OPAN media release here
Read the 7News Perth report here
Watch the Sunrise News segment here
December 2020
To celebrate International Volunteer Day 2020, Advocare hosted a celebratory breakfast, attended by Minister Mick Murray and over 30 volunteers from Advocare’s Community Visitor Scheme (CVS), at Crown Perth on Friday 4 December 2020. This was an opportunity to highlight the incredible contribution Advocare’s volunteers make to the lives of socially isolated or lonely older people, receiving aged care services in-home or in residential aged care across Perth.
October 2020
Advocare are very excited to be working with the WA Department of Communities to train financial counsellors to recognise, respond and prevent financial elder abuse, particularly in vulnerable communities. Advocare will develop and deliver a series of live webinars for the financial services industry, which will also be available as an ongoing resource on the Advocare website. The first training session will be launched at the Financial Counsellors’ Association of WA’s Annual Conference 2020. Advocare’s Acting CEO, Justine Martyr, will be presenting at the conference on Monday 26 & Wednesday 28 October 2020.
September 2020
Advocare’s Acting CEO, Justine Martyr, was interviewed by The West Australian in response to the fatal attack on Perth grandfather Emiliano Lombardi. This article featured in The West on Thursday 3 September 2020.
July 2020
Advocare’s CEO, Diedre Timms, spoke with Gareth Parker on Mornings 6PR to discuss the need for adequate planning to deal with COVID-19 in aged care facilities as the Royal Commission into Aged Care continues. Diedre also highlights that all older people with who have tested positive to COVID-19 have the right to be treated in hospital if they choose, as aged care facilities are not equipped to deal with the virus.
Advocare’s CEO, Diedre Timms, spoke with Scotty Day from 6WR The Brekky Show on Waringarri Radio in Kununurra on 21 July to promote a forum and series of education sessions in the Kununurra region. Some of Advocare’s experienced team including Advocare’s Specialist Advocates were in the region to talk to local community members who may need assistance with accessing aged care services or understanding what supports are available to them. A media statement was also released to promote this event.
Listen and watch the interview here
June 2020
Hear Advocare’s CEO, Diedre Timms, talk to Ollie Peterson from 6PR Radio about financial elder abuse within the WA Community and how older West Australians can fall victim to financial scams, particularly with the shift to cashless transactions.
As part of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD) 2020, a media statement was released outlining the impacts of elder abuse within the WA community and what signs to look out for that an older person may be at risk of elder abuse. This statement also highlights the concern that COVID-19 will most likely amplify some of the pre-existing risk factors for elder abuse, and that as older people are more isolated during the pandemic, some of these warning signs may be missed as a result.
May 2020
Anneka Bunt, one of Advocare’s Aged Care Navigators, spoke to Matty at Goolarri Media about the role of Advocare and how we can support older West Australians with advocacy, information and support. Anneke also explains how Advocare is trialling an information project assisting seniors to navigate the Australian aged care system, ‘My Aged Care’, for access to aged care services. Anneke also explains what services are still available for Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians in the Broome and Kimberley regions via phone during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Anneka Bunt, one of Advocare’s Aged Care Navigators, recently spoke to Ngaarda Media about how Advocare is trialling an information project to assist seniors to navigate the Australian aged care system, ‘My Aged Care’, for access to aged care services, and about how our services are still available for Indigenous and other Australians in the north-west via the phone during the COVID-19 pandemic.
April 2020
Advocare CEO Diedre Timms was interviewed by the ABC about the impact closures of aged care facilities had had on older Australians due to the COVID-19 pandemic, calling on operators to reconsider their bans on visitors.
Advocare CEO Diedre Timms joined The Weekend Catch-Up where she told Mark Gibson aged care providers who had gone further with lock downs had caused unintended consequences.
27 February 2020
A media statement has been released today inviting older residents of Denmark, their families and carers to the first event in our Older Together – A Community Conversation series on Monday 16 March 2020, from 10:00am until 12:30pm, at the Shire of Denmark Reception Room, 953 South Coast Hwy, Denmark.
Read the media statement here.
17 February 2020
A media statement has been released today inviting older residents of Donnybrook, their families and carers to the first event in our Older Together – A Community Conversation series on Monday 24 February 2020. The workshop is free to attend and open to people of all ages.
Read the media statement here.
11 February 2020
A media statement has been released today inviting older residents of Esperance, their families and carers to the first event in our Older Together – A Community Conversation series on Thursday 13 February 2020, from 9:30am until 12:00pm, at the Esperance Deep Sea Angling Club, 99 Daw Drive, Bandy Creek.
28 November 2019
Advocare’s CEO Diedre Timms article “Thanks to seniors feature highlighting positive ageing” was featured in The Countryman newspaper today.
22 November 2019
A media statement was released today inviting older Port Hedland seniors, their families and carers to special information sessions in Port Hedland on Monday 2nd and Tuesday 3rd December 2019 as part of the National Aged Care Navigator Trial.
13 November 2019
Advocare’s CEO Diedre Timms was interviewed by Eliza Wynn for a front page story in the Avon Valley and Wheatbelt Advocate, ‘Aged care agenda: Attitude towards elders to change’ as part of Seniors Week 2019.
12 November 2019
Advocare’s CEO Diedre Timms article “It’s up to all of us to help stop elder abuse” was featured in the West Australian today as part of Seniors Week 2019.
8 November 2019
A media statement was released today inviting older Midwest residents, their families and carers to special information sessions in Geraldton and Kalbarri on the 25th, 26th and 28th November 2019 as part of the National Aged Care Navigator Trial.
5 November 2019
A media statement was released today inviting older Derby residents, their families and carers to a special information session in the Derby Library on Wednesday 20th November 2019 as part of the National Aged Care Navigator Trial.
8 October 2019
A media statement was released today inviting older Karratha residents, their families and carers to a special information session in Karratha City Shopping Centre on Thursday 17th October 2019 as part of the National Aged Care Navigator Trial.
19 September 2019
A media statement was released today inviting older Kimberley residents, their families and carers to a special information session in Broome on Tuesday 24th September 2019 as part of the National Aged Care Navigator Trial.
15 June 2019
Our CEO Diedre Timms, Prevention of Family and Domestic Violence Minister Simone McGurk and Chief Operating Officer of Bankwest’s personal and business banking division launched the Government’s draft strategy to tackle the issue and raise awareness of financial elder abuse.
14 June 2019
Today we began a partnership with Legal Aid WA to enhance the support for those calling the Elder Abuse Helpline. Advocare Advocates and Legal Aid Lawyers will also be able to directly contact each other to obtain information about legal issues and refer clients for non-legal advocacy support and referral.
6 June 2019
Hear our CEO Diedre Timms talk to Ben D’Andrea at the Wire Radio talking about elder abuse and inheritance impatience following from the news regarding Stan Lee’s elder abuse lawsuit lain against former associates.
21 May 2019
Our CEO Diedre Timms and Specialist Advocate Justine Martyr attended the announcement of the new funding agreement by Minister Mick Murray today at Parliament House ensuring the continuation of Advocare’s Elder Abuse Helpline for a further 5 years.
1 May 2019
Advocare’s recommendations were featured in the Health and Medicine section of the Aged Care Guide magazine in the West Australian about care choices available if you are stuck or unhappy with your home provider.
29 March 2019
Advocare’s CEO, Diedre Timms welcomes the new single Charter of Rights with the focus on consumer well being.
New laws will compel all aged care providers to sign and conform to a single, strengthened Charter of Rights released this week under the Government’s latest aged care quality and safety reforms.
More Information and Charter here
11 January 2019
Following the Morrison government announcing an additional 10,000 home care packages to be rolled out across the country this week, our CEO Diedre Timms explains to ‘Starts at 60’ that there are currently over 100,000 senior Australians on the list to receive these vital services, and the roll out will only cater for 10% of those in need.
3 December 2018
Financial elder abuse was a ‘hot topic’ on Channel 7’s Sunrise, following The West Australian’s report into elder abuse. With calls to our WA Elder Abuse Helpline increasing, we are seeing more and more older people bravely coming forward for elder abuse support from our advocates.
Read the West Australian article & watch the sunrise segment here
Read the Perth Now article here
7 November 2018
Our CEO Diedre Timms spoke with the Australian Business Executive about the services offered by Advocare, the work undertaken to raise our profile, and the need for the government to allocate adequate funding and resources to the aged care sector.
2 November 2018
Read the article ‘Elder Abuse is Everyone’s Business’ in the November edition of the Medical Forum WA, WA’s Independent Monthly for Health Professionals. Our CEO Diedre Timms spoke with Peter McClelland about the community’s role in identifying and responding to elder abuse.
14 September 2018
Nearly two-thirds of aged care residents are prescribed psychotropic drugs regularly. Questions that must be urgently asked. Read Sarah Russell’s article released by The Guardian – ‘Robbed of Precious time’: chemical restraints and aged care.
13 September 2018
Read Caroline Baum’s article released by The Guardian – A sense of belonging: the best aged care lifts the spirits.
Read Caroline Baum’s article released by The Guardian – Inheritance impatience: ‘Our family has been wrecked by this experience’.
8 August 2018
Listen to our CEO, Diedre Timms, talking to Mornings on 6PR|882 with Gareth Parker about the impact of elder abuse in our community.