Grief and trauma support for older Australians impacted by COVID-19

If you receive, work or care for someone in aged care and need grief or trauma support due to COVID-19, there is government help available.

Support includes counselling, information on self-care, resources, and advocacy services. There are also specific services for carers.

Australian Centre for Grief and Bereavement

The Australian Centre for Grief and Bereavement (ACGB) provides grief and bereavement education and support. This includes:

• Counselling. Call ACGB on 1800 22 22 00 for group or individual sessions (via telehealth, video call, or in person).
  • If you would rather speak a language other than English, ACGB has interpreting support for Arabic, Czech, Farsi, French, Italian, Japanese, Maltese, Sinhali, Tamil, Spanish and Yiddish.
  • For languages not listed above, call the Translating and interpreting Service on 131 450.
  • Auslan is available for people who are deaf and hard of hearing.
• Support for community organisations and aged care providers. Community and religious groups, practitioners, and aged care providers can get advice on strategies to support their communities, clients and residents. Call 1800 22 22 00 for more information.
• Phone app. The free My Grief app provides tools if you need support with your feelings of loss. The app also has strategies for carers on how to support someone experiencing grief and loss.

For more information, or for a full list of COVID-19-specific grief and trauma fact sheets, visit the ACGB website.

Phoenix Australia

Phoenix Australia offers information and tools to support people who have experienced trauma. This includes COVID-19 support and support for historical trauma. Phoenix Australia also provide information for carers, families, and aged care providers, as well as tip sheets to support health practitioners and community members.

Visit the Phoenix Australia website for more information.

Need translating or interpreting assistance?

If you need a translator to access these services, you can call the Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS National) on 131 450. Choose your language and then nominate which service you’d like to connect to. If you are deaf, deafblind or hard of hearing, you can access sign language interpreting and captioning services through Deaf Connect.

More information

To learn more about the COVID-19 aged care grief and trauma support services available to you, visit the Department of Health and Aged Care website.