Falls prevention and home safety
Strategies to prevent falls before they happen. And after a fall, working out why it happened and what will reduce the risk.
Northern Beaches & Lower North Shore
The place you love. The life you’ve built in it.
In-home occupational therapy for older people, at home, in a village, or in residential aged care.
Support at Home · Aged care
What I can help with
Home modifications
Changes small or large that improve safety and access. Prescribed, specified, and followed through with your builder.
Equipment and aids
Practical equipment to support daily routines, safety and wellbeing, including AT-HM prescriptions under Support at Home.
Assessments and reports
A clear account of how someone is managing, for the family, the GP or the provider, and for Support at Home plan reviews.
Reablement and restorative care
Goal-based OT programs to rebuild strength, confidence and independence, with progress measured from start to finish.
Coming home from hospital
Reviewing access and equipment before discharge, so the first week home works.
Moving into care
Support through the move into residential aged care, and ongoing visits once you are settled.
Support for family and carers
Practical education, safe manual handling, and a clear plan for supporting someone at home or in the community.
Why I do this
My grandparents lived on the Northern Beaches. So do my parents, and so do I.
I’m Shelley, an occupational therapist. I was born and raised on the Northern Beaches and live in Seaforth, with family spread from Mosman to Palm Beach.
What I want for the people I see is what I’d want for my own parents. To stay in the place they love, near the people they know, with the choice and sense of control that comes with running your own life.
It’s where the name comes from. A basecamp is the place you head out from and come back to. Sometimes that’s the family home. Sometimes that’s your room in a residential home.
Where I work
From Manly to Palm Beach, and over to Mosman
- Manly
- Fairlight
- Balgowlah
- Clontarf
- Seaforth
- Manly Vale
- Freshwater
- Curl Curl
- Dee Why
- Brookvale
- Cromer
- Collaroy
- Narrabeen
- Wheeler Heights
- Allambie Heights
- Beacon Hill
- Killarney Heights
- Forestville
- Frenchs Forest
- Belrose
- Davidson
- Warriewood
- Elanora Heights
- Mona Vale
- Bayview
- Newport
- Avalon
- Palm Beach
- Terrey Hills
- Mosman
- Cremorne
- Neutral Bay
Homes, retirement villages and residential aged care.
For care managers and providers
Making a referral
Email or ring with the client’s name, suburb and what needs looking at. I’ll come back to you within two to three business days and tell you when I can get there.
Working with registered Support at Home providers, private in-home care providers, and hospital and community discharge teams. Compliance pack and fee schedule on request.
Common questions
What does an occupational therapist actually do?
Ageing changes what a day looks like, not what it’s worth.
Aged care OTs partner with older people and their families to solve the practical barriers: mobility, memory, fatigue, the shower that’s suddenly hard to get into. So people can stay connected to the life they’ve built.
What does “ageing in place” mean?
Ageing in place means staying in your own home and community as you get older, rather than moving into residential aged care. With the right supports brought to you, so that staying is safe and workable, not just stubborn.
In practice it covers:
- The home itself. Modifications like rails, ramps, level-access showers, better lighting, decluttered pathways.
- Equipment and tech. Mobility aids, shower chairs, personal alarms, medication prompts.
- Community connection. Transport, social groups, remaining part of the neighbourhood you know.
And when staying isn’t possible, I help with the move as well.
Do you only work with people in their own homes?
No. I work wherever someone lives within my area, including retirement villages and residential aged care. I also support people through the move from home into care, which is often when an OT is most useful.
How long is the wait?
Most people are seen within two weeks.
Can I arrange this for my mum or dad?
Yes, and it happens often. Get in touch and we can talk through what you’re seeing before anything is booked.
How is it funded?
Two ways. Through My Aged Care if you have a Support at Home package or an older home care package, in which case your provider claims it against your budget. Or privately, with no referral, waitlist or eligibility test.
Fee schedule on request.