High risk, low funding: Provider to stop delivering dementia care services

Queensland residential aged care provider Superior Care Group has made the shock announcement that it will no longer provide dementia care services to residents at its two homes.

Chief Executive Officer Russell Egan shared the news via LinkedIn, citing multiple factors that led to the decision to cease dementia care services.

Key points

• Superior Care operates two residential aged care homes: Wellington Point in Brisbane and Merrimac Park on the Gold Coast
• Website visitors will encounter an error 404 message when seeking dementia care information on the organisation’s website
• CEO Russell Egan listed inadequate government funding, security of tenure and declining business viability as reasons to stop dementia care

Superior Care’s decision is influenced by a wide range of internal and external pressures with an increased risk of non-compliance and resident harm among them.

Mr Egan shared the following statement:

“Superior Care Group is ceasing dementia care services. There are multiple factors:

a. Increased risk to residents due to pressure on hospitals to place residents with dangerous behaviours in permanent residential care, which is unsafe for other residents and staff;

b. Security of tenure is problematic when hospitals and families misrepresent the nature of a resident’s behaviours, and following grant of a permanent placement, the process to require a resident to leave is onerous.

c. The pool of suitable dementia residents is falling due to the expansion of home care in caring for people with mild dementia, placing pressure on occupancy levels;

d. The declining business viability of committing rooms to dementia care when the Commonwealth Government does not pay for vacant bed days, whilst any agreement with the Queensland Government for subcontracted places would pay for all vacant bed days;

e. The increased complexity, regulation and documentation of care delivery for dementia residents, resulting in increased risk of non-compliance;

f. The inadequate AN-ACC funding level for dementia residents considering the above risk factors.”

The early response to the news has been a mix of surprise and understanding. 

Thrive Aged Care Director Kathy Kirby said it was ‘sad to read’. She also prompted a follow-up response from Mr Egan where he said that the Australian National Aged Care Classification (AN-ACC) funding model is not properly resourced to support 24/7 dementia care. 

He added that providers are not afforded the right to remove ‘incompatible residents’, and keeping beds available for dementia care in a shrinking market increased the difficulty of generating a commercial return.

G5 Strategic Principal Consultant Stephen Rooke further highlighted how this choice could be repeated across the sector.

“60%+ of current aged care residents are living with a dementia that is advanced enough to require 24/7 care. The other 1/3 are palliative, too frail to stay at home, or lack adequate social/carer support,” he said.

“I had assumed that the projected shortfall in future aged care facilities by 2033 would mean that the 60-70% of beds we do have would all be allocated to dementia residents, leaving the frail, isolated and palliative to be cared for at home.

“What will the world look like if it is the dementia care residents who don’t have anywhere to go? That’s twice as many people as are in the other cohort.

“What will happen when some residents who do get admitted due to clinical care needs develop behaviours that cannot be cared for at that facility later on?

“I don’t think we’re ready for the answers to those questions. Particularly the hospital system.”

Healthcare leader Richard Hoskins commended the organisation’s choice and acknowledged how difficult it would have been. He honed in on the fact that there are two competing viewpoints on dementia care when he said, ‘Again social design not aligning to policy and expectations! Why no one cares what data and industry is saying!’

He expects other providers will make similar decisions about their dementia care services in the future. Mr Egan declined to comment further on the matter when contacted by Hello Leaders.