Industry News

As regional aged care operators find it harder and harder to make ends meet, how has one organisation seemingly bucked the trend by exclusively expanding into regional Australia?

Australia’s largest retirement living operator, Aveo Group, has survived what could have been an industry-shaking class action lawsuit after the plaintiff conceded it had no case.

According to NARI Director, Professor Briony Dow, the number of older people worldwide is projected to more than double in the coming decades — exceeding 1.5 billion people in 2050.

Blue Care, a not-for-profit aged care provider owned by the Uniting Church, has decided to close its Millbank facility in Bundaberg. The facility has been providing residential care services to elderly residents for over 65 years and consists of 48 single rooms.

Employers must now make a request for their staff to work public holidays following a major Federal Court ruling that could change the way organisations roster their staff.

Aged care providers could be made to back pay workers who arrived early to work and did a Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) before their shift.

Six new quality indicators will need to be reported on by residential aged care providers, while Home Care providers will have their own reportable standards implemented soon too. 

Over 5000 healthcare workers in the aged care sector have lost their jobs due to the Government’s oversights during the reforms process and the grim numbers have prompted local workers and community advocates to gather in Canberra to mourn the job losses. 

The aged care sector’s maximum permissible interest rate (MPIR) will rise for the sixth consecutive quarter, reaching an 11-year high of 7.46% for new residents from April 1.

Amendments to work health and safety (WHS) laws to include regulations on managing psychosocial risks and hazards at work will come into effect next month and aged care providers and those in management roles are expected to know how to implement these changes on the ground.