NewDirection Care

Redefining Senior Living

Freedom of Movement, Independence, and Choice

Few have innovated as meaningfully in aged care as Natasha Chadwick, founder of NewDirection Care. With over 30 years in healthcare, Chadwick’s career has been dedicated to redefining the senior living experience. Her latest endeavor, NewDirection Care, responds to a pressing need she encountered personally and professionally: to create a genuinely supportive, community-centered environment for older Australians. Driven by a vision for a compassionate and empowering model of care, Chadwick’s “MICRO TOWN®” is reimagining what aged care can be, allowing residents to live with independence and dignity.

Chadwick’s journey began with an all-too-familiar realization: standard aged care facilities didn’t align with the life she envisioned for her mother. “I just couldn’t think of anywhere that I would be happy for her to live out the rest of her life,” she shares. This led Chadwick to question why she, as a leader in the industry, would continue offering a model she wouldn’t endorse for her loved ones. Thus began a personal and professional quest to create an environment where seniors could maintain a sense of home and autonomy.

Building a MICRO TOWN®

Unlike the typical institutional model, NewDirection Care’s MICRO TOWN® in Bellmere, Queensland, feels like a neighborhood. “When you walk in, there are six streets, each lined with houses that look, feel and function just like a real home,” Chadwick explains. Each house accommodates seven residents, with dedicated staff trained to provide personalized, holistic care. This “small house” model, one of the smallest globally, ensures an intimate, home-like environment where residents can live with dignity and choice.

Every aspect of the MICRO TOWN®’s design focuses on normalcy and community. Residents choose when to wake up, when and what they eat, and how they spend their day—mirroring the freedoms of independent living. “If someone wakes up at six, their day starts. It’s up to them what they want to do, whether it’s breakfast, a shower, or even a workout,” Chadwick says. For some, that may mean heading to the gym, stopping by the cafe, or picking up a few items from the corner store. This flexibility allows seniors to engage in life on their terms, a privilege seldom found in traditional aged care facilities.

New workforce, House Companion™ Support Worker

Integral to this approach is a new role created by NewDirection Care: the “House Companion™ Support Worker” (house companion). In Chadwick’s words, these house companions “do everything the residents need, but with them, not for them.” Highly trained in personal care, nursing, dementia care, medication management, and even cooking and cleaning, house companions work alongside residents, supporting them in day-to-day tasks and fostering a sense of agency and independence. Unlike traditional staff roles centered around regimented tasks, house companions shape their day around the resident’s preferences, fostering a collaborative and nurturing atmosphere.

Chadwick explains, “In traditional aged care, it’s task-focused—how many showers can be done by this time, how many residents can be dressed by eight o’clock. But here, it’s the residents who drive the schedule. They live how they want to live.” This shift from task-driven care to person-centered support is transformative, enabling residents to maintain control of their lives and NewDirection Care is a pioneer in this approach.

Changing perspectives on aging

In Australia, discussions about aging and dementia are often postponed until a significant life event forces the conversation. “It’s quite scary that our communities feel that way about dementia and aging,” Chadwick reflects. “Usually, something dramatic has to happen in somebody’s life for them to look at it, which is unfortunate that it’s not discussed sooner.”

NewDirection Care’s innovative approach aims to take the fear out of aging, showing that with the proper support, people can age well no matter their diagnosis or care needs. Through their wellness center and accessible support services, Chadwick’s team helps seniors live the best possible life, achieving remarkable improvements in mobility. “Research states “20% of residents experience improvement in function within 8-12 weeks of moving in, while 90% of residents at least maintain their functional mobility status during the same period. This is a vast improvement over the more common experience of residents moving into residential aged care who typically experience a rapid decline in their functional ability from their date of admission and within 2 years their functional capacity has reduced by 56% on average,”Chadwick shares.

This progress stems from NewDirection Care’s commitment to resident engagement. Whether participating in gym activities, socializing, or simply walking around the community, seniors are encouraged to be active and involved.

By normalizing senior living, the MICRO TOWN® model fosters community interaction and challenges the stigma around aging and dementia. “We have various community programs to teach what dementia is, how to interact with someone living with cognitive change, and how to engage with aging positively,” says Chadwick. These initiatives contribute to a more compassionate, informed community, reducing the fear and misconceptions surrounding aging.

Breaking the barriers of isolation

The MICRO TOWN® community is designed to welcome residents, neighbours, and visitors from the surrounding Moreton Bay region. Unlike traditional aged care facilities, it encourages interaction by opening its on-site cafe, corner store, wellness center, cinema and other amenities to the public. Visitors can stop by for a coffee, do some grocery shopping, or access wellness services—fostering an inclusive atmosphere where the lines between aged care and everyday community life naturally blur. “People from the houses next door to the aged care community come in and use the facilities, creating natural interactions and a real community feel,” Chadwick explains.

MICRO TOWN® 2.0: Expanding the vision

Despite the success of the current MICRO TOWN®, Chadwick isn’t content to rest on her achievements. Plans are underway for what she calls “MICRO TOWN® Version 2.0,” an expansion of the current Bellmere community. The improved model will feature a health and wellness hub with GP clinics and other health services, an expanded gym, and adult day respite centre care to support people living at home. “Our goal is to help people stay at home as long as possible by providing restorative care and connecting them with our community,” Chadwick notes. This expanded model will allow people to continue living at home with a higher quality of life, integrating them into the MICRO TOWN® as they need additional support.

However, perhaps one of the most groundbreaking components of version 2.0 is the integration of childcare within the community. “We’re building a childcare center fully integrated with our adult programs,” Chadwick shares. This cross-generational approach will see children and seniors engaging in daily activities together, from shared meals to arts and crafts, fostering bonds that enrich both groups. Chadwick envisions a truly integrated environment where “older people are engaged daily in what’s happening with the children, and vice versa.”

Family business values

NewDirection Care’s transformation into a family business brings an added layer of dedication. Chadwick’s brother, Greg Aleckson, and her son, Justin Chadwick, are now deeply involved, working with her to sustain and expand the company’s mission. “Having them on board has renewed my desire to continue innovating and challenging the status quo,” Chadwick reveals. “It’s inspiring to know that we’re building something together, not only for residents we support but also for the future of aged care.”

The dedication to family values extends to how the organization selects its staff. Every new hire is chosen based on five core values Chadwick believes are essential to NewDirection Care’s mission. “When we engage with potential team members, we look for those who truly believe in these values and can articulate what they mean to them,” she says. This alignment ensures that everyone in the organization—from directors to house companions—is committed to compassionate, person-centered care.

Pioneering change

As NewDirection Care continues to evolve, Chadwick hopes to inspire broader change across the aged care sector. She notes that traditional aged care is often steeped in “paternalism and ageism,” with residents expected to accept whatever services they’re given without question. NewDirection Care takes a different approach, advocating for the “human rights” of every resident. “We’re just now beginning to see this concept become part of the wider conversation, but it’s something we’ve been championing since the beginning,” Chadwick states. Based on user rights, Australia’s upcoming aged care reform aligns with the principles that NewDirection Care has promoted from day one.

Supporting staff and fostering wellness

In addition to supporting residents, NewDirection Care goes to great lengths to support its team members. Understanding caregiving’s physical and emotional demands, the organization offers programs promoting employee well-being. “We offer meals to the team and even at-cost meals for them to take home, so they’re not stressed about what to feed their families after a long day,” Chadwick says. This support extends to educational programs, mentorship, and partnerships with universities, enabling staff to grow within the organization. Such initiatives reduce turnover and create a workplace culture grounded in empathy and support.

Aging with grace

NewDirection Care’s innovative approach extends to the very details of daily life. For instance, residents have access to double and queen-size beds, a rarity in aged care, allowing couples to maintain their relationships even as they age. “As adults, we’re used to sleeping in bigger beds. Yet aged care facilities often reduce people to single beds. It just doesn’t make sense,” Chadwick says.

Partnerships with suppliers, such as Woolworths and Coles, further emphasize this commitment. By providing familiar grocery items, Chadwick ensures that residents continue enjoying the exact products they did at home, keeping their lives routine and comfortable. Similarly, collaboration with Wentworth Furniture led to the introduction of full-sized beds, another thoughtful initiative.

Ultimately, NewDirection Care exemplifies how aged care can honor the person, not the patient. As Chadwick reflects, “We all age, and we can all age well if given the right support. Aging isn’t something to fear, but something to embrace.”

AT A GLANCE

NewDirection Care

What: A specialized aged care facility offering an innovative MICRO TOWN® model for people requiring care, including those living with dementia or complex care needs.

Where: Bellmere, Queensland, Australia

Website: https://newdirectioncare.com.au/

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