Compliance Theatre: A Director of Nursing reveals why she feels set up to fail

For Sarah, a Director of Nursing at a semi-rural aged care facility, the intention to deliver exceptional care has always been at the heart of her work. With a team of dedicated staff who pour their hearts into looking after residents, she believes they’re doing their best. But there’s a catch: there’s just not enough of them.

The expectations piled on by regulators, new reforms, and endless paperwork feel like a mountain too steep to climb. “We want to do right by our residents,” said Sarah.“But we’re stretched so thin, it’s like we’re set up to fail. We’ve got great people, but the system expects miracles without giving us the resources to pull them off.”

Concerned about what she sees happening on the ground, Sarah approached Hello Leaders to share her story anonymously. She wanted to shine a light on a growing issue she calls “compliance theatre”: the gap between what’s written in policy manuals and what’s actually happening in aged care homes.

It’s not about cutting corners deliberately. It’s about a sector buckling under pressure, where providers meet the bare minimum on paper while struggling to deliver in practice.

This phenomenon, known as soft non-compliance, is quietly undermining the aged care sector as it braces for the new Aged Care Act and faces tougher scrutiny from regulators. It’s not malicious. It’s not criminal. But it’s everywhere.

What is soft non-compliance?

Soft non-compliance is the grey zone between breaking rules and truly meeting standards.

It’s the half-completed risk assessment, the policy updated for an audit but not lived out on the floor, the training module ticked off without meaningful follow-through. It’s subtle but insidious, creating a facade of compliance that hides real gaps in care.

“It’s like we’re putting on a play for the auditors,” Sarah says, clearly. “We get the paperwork done, tick the boxes, and make it look right. But at night, on the floor, I see staff running themselves into the ground, call bells going unanswered for too long, care plans not updated because everyone’s flat out. It’s not breaking the law, but it’s not real compliance either. It’s just compliance theatre, and it’s the residents who miss out.”

Why is soft non-compliance happening?

The roots of soft non-compliance lie in systemic pressures that no single provider can fully overcome. Workforce shortages are a major driver. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare reported a shortfall of over 30,000 workers in 2024, a gap that continues to grow.

Staff, stretched to breaking point, prioritise immediate resident needs over documentation or procedural updates, leading to accumulating gaps that fuel soft non-compliance.

Reform fatigue adds to the strain. The looming Aged Care Act will usher in another wave of new standards, reporting requirements, and compliance expectations. While aimed at improving care, these changes have previously buried providers under bureaucratic demands that smaller or under-resourced facilities struggle to meet.

“We’re knackered from all the new rules,” Sarah says. “Every week, it’s another guideline, another form, another system to learn. But no one’s giving us extra staff or time to make it work. So we do what we can to keep the auditors happy, but we know it’s not enough.”

Digital transformation, meant to help, often complicates things further. Outdated systems, incompatible platforms, and inconsistent training create chaos. A 2024 study by the Aged Care Industry Information Technology Council found that 60% of providers struggled to integrate new digital tools, leading to incomplete or inaccurate data – another quiet form of non-compliance.

The toll on staff

The impact of soft non-compliance extends beyond residents and families; it takes a heavy toll on aged care staff. Constantly juggling urgent care needs with administrative demands, workers face burnout, frustration, and a growing sense of disillusionment.

The pressure to meet regulatory standards with inadequate resources creates a dissonance that erodes morale. Staff know they’re doing their best, but the gap between their efforts and the system’s expectations leaves them feeling defeated.

For Sarah, this is personal. “I’m out there with my team, trying to give our residents the best care possible,” she said. “But it’s like we’re running on empty, and no matter how much we do, it still feels like we’re falling short. It’s gut-wrenching, and I see it in my staff’s eyes too. They’re starting to go numb, like they’re losing that spark that got them into this work. I’m terrified that if this keeps up, they’ll stop believing in what we’re doing altogether.”

This emotional toll risks creating a vicious cycle. As staff become desensitised to the gap between policy and practice, they may disengage, cutting corners not out of malice but out of exhaustion. High turnover rates worsen as workers leave for less demanding roles, further deepening the staffing shortage and perpetuating soft non-compliance.

The wider cost of compliance theatre

The consequences of soft non-compliance ripple outward. Regulators, focused on paperwork and audit trails, may not notice gaps until a serious incident like a preventable fall or missed medication exposes them.

Residents and families feel the impact daily: delayed call bell responses, rushed care, or outdated care plans that don’t reflect their needs.

“This compliance theatre doesn’t fool the residents,” Sarah says. “They know when their buzzer’s ignored for half an hour or when their care’s rushed because we’re short-staffed. And god love them, they actually sympathise with us. They see how hard we work.”

For providers, soft non-compliance risks reputational damage, regulatory penalties, or funding cuts. But the human cost is burnout, disillusionment, and a hollowed-out workforce.

Breaking the cycle: A path forward

Addressing soft non-compliance demands a rethink of how aged care approaches reform and regulation. Higher standards must come with real support. Here’s how to start:

• Fund Reform Properly: Governments must pair new standards with funding for training, staffing, and technology upgrades. Without resources, compliance remains a paper exercise.
• Prioritise Practical Support: Training should focus on embedding reforms into daily practice, not just audit preparation. Hands-on, facility-specific support is essential.
• Measure Outcomes, Not Paperwork: Regulators should assess whether residents receive timely, dignified care, not just whether forms are completed. Audits should reward providers who live the intent of reform.
• Foster Honest Dialogue: Leaders need to speak openly about resource gaps without fear of punishment. Transparent conversations between providers, regulators, and policymakers are critical.

“We’ve got to stop pretending it’s all good,” Sarah says. “Leaders need the guts to say, ‘We’re trying our hardest, but we need help.’ Otherwise, we’re just putting on a show for the auditors, and that’s not what our residents deserve. And government should try poking their heads into an aged care home every now and then to see what the reality is”