A terribly sad case. Police were called to the dementia support unit at a Wollongong aged care facility last week after a 90-year-old man died as a result of serious injuries allegedly inflicted by another resident, a 77-year-old man.
Local police and the NSW Homicide Squad are now investigating the incident.
Two days after the incident, Fairfax highlighted new data that shows two people die and over 4,000 assaults are reported in aged care homes every year as a result of resident-to-resident aggression – which researchers say results in cases being “woefully under-reported”.
Aged care providers are required by law to report assault and abuse allegations to the police and Department of Health within 24 hours, but residents with cognitive or mental impairments are exempt from mandatory reporting to the Department.
