Fronditha Care President and Board Chair Jill Taylor-Nikitakis, addressed all the participants that joined the first member briefing for 2022, detailing the significant achievements of the organisation as it marks its 45th anniversary.
Despite the challenges facing the aged care sector, Fronditha Care has continued to grow and is future focused, dedicated to building on its legacy.
“I am proud of what Fronditha Care has achieved over the past year and the commitment of its leadership, Board and Executive, to continue to meet the growing needs of our community, building a continuum of care from community through to residential services,” Ms Taylor-Nikitakis said.
Noting that the sector is experiencing financial pressure due to increased operating costs and the chronic underfunding identified in 2020 by the Royal Commission, she noted that Fronditha Care had undergone significant transformation since the beginning of 2021 to continue to respond and meet the needs of all those in its care.
Ms Taylor-Nikitakis stressed that Fonditha continues to take the COVID-19 pandemic seriously which continues to require hyper vigilance and ongoing close management.
Separating the performance of Fronditha Care, in comparison to other providers, she said: “We continue to provide uncompromised service as evidenced by the full re-accreditation of all our facilities. Moreover, benchmarking shows that sector average occupancy rates sit at 88-90 per cent, whereas the Fronditha Care average is 97 per cent. Community Services has also seen a significant and continuous volume growth with more clients choosing “Fronditha Care due to its credibility, culturally specific care model and the quality care of its service delivery.” Ms Taylor-Nikitakis stated.
“Our workforce is critical to ensuring our residents and clients receive the best care possible and we are absolutely committed to recognising and supporting our people to be the best they can be. We also know that remuneration is critical to attraction and retention. However, in last week’s Federal Budget there was no investment to aged care wages which was disappointing, as it was a missed opportunity to embed real change and acknowledge the real value of the aged care workforce.”
The President then committed to push reforms across key domains of clinical and personal care, operational and financial performance and especially the elder experience – “whether they are at the beginning or end of their aged care journey” while acknowledging her fellow Fronditha Care Directors and CEO Faye Spiteri OAM and her team for their dedication and significant achievements in such a short space of time.
In closing, Ms Taylor-Nikitakis paid tribute to the founders of Fronditha Care, who since 1977 have been identifying a gap in culturally appropriate care in Melbourne’s Greek Community and “established a service to care for our elders, especially those who had no financial means, to ensure access to services and supports to be cared for in their twilight years and remain socially connected”.
“We are custodians of an incredible legacy,” she continued, “and the commitment and financial support of many of you here this evening has been critical in shaping that legacy. With a rich tradition of love and care, today our Bounty of Care ethos drives us to go beyond the physical and health needs of our over 1,500 clients. We are absolutely focused on ensuring Fronditha Care remains a leading aged care service provider well into the future.”
Former Presidents, Mr George Demetriou, Mr Mike Zafiropoulos AM, the current Board and Faye Spiteri (Tsolakis) OAM joined together in cutting a cake to commemorate 45 years of service to the community.
