More than 60 members attended a recent NSWNMA Aged Care Summit and vowed to continue campaigning to improve the sector.

There have been many achievements in aged care to be proud of, but much work remains to be done, according to participants at the recent summit.

“Honestly, aged care has improved, but it had a lot of improvement to make. There is still neglect in aged care. There are still people dying prematurely when they shouldn’t be”, said Lannelle Bailey, an AiN in aged care and a NSWNMA Councillor.

Lannelle says while work conditions are important, it wasn’t the focus for participants at the summit.

“For aged care workers the main frustration is that their working conditions lead to neglect of their residents, and I think that’s what breaks their hearts the most.”

For Jocelyn Hofman, an aged care RN and fellow NSWNMA Councillor, the highlight of the summit was the growth in the number of activists.

“When I first started this advocacy work decades ago, there was only a handful of us and now it is inspiring to see so many faces in that group. Our membership has increased a lot and we’re much stronger.

“The work is not done yet, but we are a force to be reckoned with. There was plenty of enthusiasm to keep on campaigning to make positive change.”

Mandated care minutes are not working

Both Jocelyn and Lannelle say that it was clear in discussions that members believed the implementation of aged care minutes and direct care minutes was flawed across the sector.

There was a widely held belief that there is a need for ratios in the sector, they say.

“We’re finding out that providers are doing staff reclassification, counting indirect care like preparing food, lifestyle activities, or administration work towards care minute quotas. That’s very manipulative and deceptive,” said Jocelyn.

“I am baffled as to how they thought care minutes were going to work,” added Lannelle.

“At least with ratios, it’s more about the numbers on the floor and it’s more about giving autonomy to the staff to understand what the residents require and distributing themselves as a team where they are needed.”

A lack of staff is a root cause of violence

There was a lot of discussion at the summit around violence and the connection with staff shortages.

“Violence and aggression happen when residents’ needs aren’t met. There is a build up of frustration,” says Lannelle. “Residents can be aggressive because they’ve either been trying to communicate a need or things just aren’t going in their favour, and then frustration builds up, and the aggression comes out.

“But with better numbers around those residents, you’ve got more eyes, you’ve got more opportunity to reduce those unmet needs and to de-escalate those behaviours. It’s about staff skill mix and having experienced staff who understand and have learned to read the signs. They can then mentor and support new staff to be able to cope in situations and to learn how to read those signs.”

Transparency is needed around government funding

Jocelyn says that a key flaw around the aged care reforms is a clear lack of transparency around government funding.

“It is very important that staff members can see where the money is going,” she says.

“The providers should show where the money is going. It’s taxpayers’ money and we have to spend it wisely. Our residents’ lives are put at risk if we’re not spending it right. Providers say they’re compliant, but we know that when we work on the floor, we’re short staffed.

“The government is ultimately responsible for where the money goes, and they should impose more transparency and accountability on the providers.”

Keeping our politicians accountable

A delegation of five aged care workers visited Susan Templeman, the ALP member for the federal seat of Macquarie to share their experiences in aged care.

Jocelyn Hofman, a member of the delegation, says the visit brought home to her the importance of keeping aged care issues in front of our elected representatives, “because it’s quite possible that none of them really understand what’s going on in the sector”.

“They don’t work on the floor, so they don’t really realise what’s happening. And this is very important because it’s taxpayers’ money. It’s a lot of money, and it shouldn’t be taken for granted. Our residents’ care is very important,” she says.

Jocelyn says she delivered the blunt message that mandated direct care minutes are not working.

“She was surprised. She listened to our concerns, and she was very positive. But we still needed to do it because she wasn’t aware of what was going on. She was surprised about the manipulation of the aged care minutes and direct care minutes. She now knows there’s still a lot of work to do.”

Jocelyn says Ms Templeman gave a commitment to engage with local providers in Macquarie and to discuss members’ concerns about the aged care minutes and direct care minutes with the federal Minister for Aged Care, Sam Rae.

“She gave us a commitment that she will write to the aged care providers in her electorate to emphasise that aged care minutes and direct care minutes should be followed.

“She said that she’s going to do that and then we’re going to meet up again in September.

“I would encourage other aged care workers to see their members of parliament to show that our story is not just happening in Macquarie but across Australia.”