Home / DVA Community Nursing
DVA Provider 9728631A
DVA Community Nursing at home, at no cost to eligible veterans.
Registered Nurse led nursing and personal care for Gold and White Card holders, in the home you love. Every referral is answered within 24 to 48 hours.
No cost to youDVA funds Community Nursing for eligible veterans and war widows. You should never be asked to pay.
What is included
Clinical nursing and personal care, at home.
Everything is based on a Registered Nurse assessment and a written care plan you keep a copy of. Your GP keeps clinical oversight.
- Medication help
- Wound care
- Showering and hygiene
- Dressing
- Continence and catheter care
- Diabetes support
- Care after hospital
- Palliative care
Who is eligible.
Gold Card
Veteran Card, All Conditions
Eligible for Community Nursing for any assessed clinical need, including war widows and widowers who hold a Gold Card.
White Card
Veteran Card, Specific Conditions
Eligible when the care is needed for an accepted service related condition. We confirm this with DVA before visits start.
Not sure?
Call and we check
Tell us the card type and what is happening at home. A Registered Nurse will tell you what you can receive and how to start.
DVA renamed the Gold and White Cards as Veteran Cards. Both names mean the same cards.
How care starts.
Step one
Written referral
From a GP, hospital doctor, discharge planner or community nurse practitioner, sent to referrals@abchs.com.au.
Step two
We respond
Within 24 to 48 hours. For White Card holders we confirm eligibility with DVA.
Step three
Home assessment
Before any care begins, a Registered Nurse assesses your needs at home and gives you a written care plan.
Step four
Visits begin
Your nurse team starts visits, and your GP is kept informed of any change.
Referral rules
How long a referral lasts.
From DVA's guidance. GPs and discharge planners can use our online referral form, which DVA accepts.
From a GP or nurse practitioner
Valid for 12 months, then a new referral is needed.
From a hospital
Valid for six weeks, then the GP sends a new referral.
A new referral is also needed
When you have been out of care for more than 28 days, or when you change provider.
Accepted formats
The DVA D9389 form, the referrer's own letterhead, or a contracted provider's own form, like ours.
Why veterans and families choose us.
A reply in 24 to 48 hours
A firm promise to every referrer and every family.
Registered Nurse led
A Registered Nurse assesses, plans and oversees every client. Every nurse is Ahpra registered.
Couples in one plan
When both of you need care, one coordinated plan and one familiar team.
Nursing and home help together
We also deliver Veterans' Home Care, so nursing, cleaning and respite can come from one team.
A step down home
Somewhere private to recover after hospital, with nursing on hand, when home is not ready yet.
Culturally matched care
Carers who share your culture or language, wherever we can.
In their words
"He is really happy. There's a smile on his face. He trusts the staff and is confident, and I am breathing better."
"Bringing all the services he needs together has been a big task but amazingly you have achieved it. We cannot thank you enough."
DVA Community Nursing questions.
- What is DVA Community Nursing?
- A DVA program that funds clinically required nursing and personal care in your home, such as medication help, wound care, showering, dressing and palliative care, delivered by a DVA contracted provider like ABC Homes N Services.
- Is DVA Community Nursing free?
- Yes, for eligible veterans. DVA pays the provider directly. If anyone asks you to pay for Community Nursing, do not pay and contact DVA.
- Who is eligible?
- Gold Card holders, now called Veteran Card All Conditions, for any assessed clinical need, and White Card holders, now called Veteran Card Specific Conditions, for accepted service related conditions.
- Who can refer me?
- Your GP, a treating doctor in hospital, a hospital discharge planner, or a nurse practitioner working in community nursing. Call us and we will help arrange it with your GP.
- How long does a referral last?
- Twelve months from a GP or nurse practitioner, and six weeks from a hospital. You also need a new referral after more than 28 days out of care, or when you change provider.
- Can I have DVA Community Nursing and Veterans' Home Care together?
- Yes. They are separate DVA programs. Community Nursing covers clinical and personal care, and Veterans' Home Care covers help around the home and respite. We can deliver both, so you deal with one team.
- Can I switch my DVA nursing provider to ABC Homes N Services?
- Yes. DVA needs a new referral when you change provider. Ask your GP to send it to referrals@abchs.com.au, or call us and we will arrange it, then we handle the handover so your care does not stop.
- How quickly can nursing start after a hospital stay?
- We reply to every referral within 24 to 48 hours. If a discharge date is set, call 02 9387 3030 and we plan visits around it. If home is not ready yet, our step down home is an option.
- Does DVA pay for a nursing home?
- Community Nursing is care in your own home. Moving into a residential aged care home is arranged through My Aged Care, and DVA can advise on any help you are entitled to. Many veterans stay home longer with the right nursing in place.
- Where do you provide DVA Community Nursing?
- Local nurses are active in Sydney, Penrith, the Central Coast, Lake Macquarie, Newcastle and Nowra, and we are an approved provider in every state and territory except Tasmania. Call us to confirm your area.
Refer a client today.
Use our online form, which DVA accepts, or email referrals@abchs.com.au. We reply within 24 to 48 hours, and a Registered Nurse assesses every client at home before care begins.