The Victorian Premier’s $40 million commitment to fund minimum staff-to-resident ratios in For Profit and Not For Profit aged care homes has unsurprisingly been welcomed by the nurses’ union – and they are taking it one step further.
The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (Victorian Branch) has called for the State and Territory Governments to take over residential aged care so that aged care homes can be integrated with their own public and private health services.
Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (Victorian Branch) Secretary Lisa Fitzpatrick said: “The brutal lessons of COVID-19 tell us Victorians need one integrated health system.”
Given residential care is federally funded and regulated – with Government-run aged care homes making up only around 9% of the country’s 2,700 services – this seems highly unlikely.
In a further blow, the Aged Care Minister, Senator Richard Colbeck, has also refused to back the Andrews plan, saying that the Commonwealth will wait until the Royal Commission delivers its Final Report in February before it decides its position on staff-to-resident ratios.
“The Australian government is committed to a sustainable aged care sector and the delivery of high-quality care to older Australians and recognises that the foundation for the provision of quality care is a skilled and supported aged care workforce,” he said.
Let’s not forget too – the Counsel Assisting recommendations don’t actually recommend ratios, but rather argue for mandated staff time.
