Now the head of Queensland Not For Profit Lutheran Services, the CEO says provider type is not a safe predictor of compliance so it’s time to shelve the ‘private versus public debate’ that has gathered momentum in recent weeks around Victoria’s aged care outbreaks.
In a post on LinkedIn, Mr Ryan labelled the comparison between For Profit and Not For Profit versus Government-run facilities “unhelpful”.
“The term private aged care has emerged – in contrast to (presumably) public aged care,” he wrote.
In 2019, less than 4% of residential aged care beds were operated by State Governments – the majority of them in Victoria, he said.
Not For Profits provided 55% of the beds and For Profit providers 41%.
Mr Ryan says historically (2014-2018), compliance rates were consistent across provider types (Gov/FP/NFP).
“I suspect other intentions lie behind the use of the label ‘private’ with some implying ‘non-public’ providers ‘less open to scrutiny’ or provide worse care,” he said.
The CEO pointed out all residential aged care beds in Australia are federally funded, accredited and regulated.
“Not For Profit providers are mostly charities and are subject to the Charities Act 2013 and the scrutiny of the ACNC,” he added.
“We do not identify as private.”
Mr Ryan also cited the example of the now-closed Oakden Older Persons Mental Health Facility, which was owned and operated by the South Australian Government, calling it “arguably the worst-ever RACF in Australia”.
“An example (Oakden) of public aged care, however, not at all representative of state-run facilities,” he concluded.
“Instead, let’s talk about the best possible care for older Australians, especially during COVID.”
