Victoria’s community aged care homes are performing well according to the ‘2022 Resident’s Experience Survey’ conducted by the Australian Government’s Department of Health and Aged Care.

The 2022 survey asked 37,443 residents living across 2,689 residential aged care homes a series of questions developed in association with La Trobe University’s Lincoln Centre for Research on Ageing.

It asked a set of 14 questions, two being open ended while the remaining 12 asked for responses ranging from “never” to “always”.

Between 10 and 20 per cent of residents were surveyed at each of the near 2,700 care homes assessed, with their aggregate responses expressed as a score between one and four.

Fronditha Care’s four aged care homes in St Albans, Lower Templestowe, Clayton South and Thornbury and St Basil’s aged care in Fawkner all received scores above three.

Residents were asked questions such as “Is this place well run?”, “Do staff know what they’re doing?” and “Do staff follow up when you raise things with them?”.

St Basil’s Homes for the Aged in Victoria, located in the suburb of Fawkner achieved aggregate scores of 3.77, 3.62 and 3.31 respectively in response to the questions listed above.

Bishop Evmenios of Kerasounta, the chair of St Basils’ Board of Directors told Neos Kosmos “it pleases me greatly that the high level of care we are providing our residents is being nationally recognised.”

“The current St Basil’s team have worked incredibly hard over the last couple of years to provide the very best care for our residents, maintain our accreditation and fully comply with the directions of the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission,” the Bishop said.

“The care of our residents and the ability to continue to provide a desperately needed, high quality aged care facility for our community is of the utmost importance.”

Based on the responses of its surveyed residents, Fronditha Care’s St Albans site received an aggregate score of 3.79 in response to the question “Is this place well run?”, 3.64 regarding the question “Do staff know what they’re doing?” and 3.36 as to whether staff follow up with issues raised by residents.

Fronditha’s Lower Templestowe site received scored of 3.5, 3.64 and 3.5 respectively.

Its Clayton location received scores of 3.27, 3.27 and 3.33 to the same queries; while its Thornbury home received scores of 3.33, 3.13 and 3.53 respectively.

Conducted by a third-party consortium engaged by the federal Department in 2022 composed of consultancy firm IQVIA, Access Care Network Australia and Health Consult; the survey results contribute 33 per cent to a facility’s Star Rating.

Introduced based on a recommendation of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, Star Ratings are intended to aid older Australians and their families in comparing and selecting aged care services based on quality and safety performance.

Fronditha Care’s Lower Templestowe site received five out of five points for its Star Rating as shown via the federal Department of Health and Aged Care’s online portal myagedcare.gov.au

A dance with a smile at Fronditha Care. Photo: Supplied

The system uses a variety of metrics to assess a service provider’s quality; across the fields of Rooms and Costs, Compliance, Quality Measures, Residents’ Experience and Staffing.

These include measuring the incidence of pressure injuries sustained by residents while in care, whether they have been physically restrained, experienced unplanned weight loss or suffered falls or major injuries.

These statistics are weighted against the national average, giving users keen insight into the performance of a provider when compared to its contemporaries.

In terms of residents’ responses, which as stated previously account for 33 per cent of a provider’s star rating, 93 per cent of residents at Fronditha’s St Albans site stated they felt they were ‘always treated with respect’.

The remaining seven per cent responded they felt they were treated respectfully ‘most of the time’.

100 per cent of respondents at the site described staff as ‘kind and caring’.

Fronditha Care’s CEO, Faye Spiteri-Tsolakis told Neos Kosmos “I’m really proud of what our people have delivered for the community in these challenging times.”

“We’ve ben there when our elders and their families have needed us, and we’re here helping our people to prepare for future challenges in providing the necessary supports as the sector and needs change,” she continued.

“This feedback is vitally important in shaping our service delivery and influencing a culture of striving for excellence, smart thinking, and innovation in the care of our elders.”

“Fronditha Care is privileged to play a significant role in the delivery of services for our elderly, and the voice of those in our care will always be one of the most important drivers underpinning our service provision,” she concluded.

Readers can access the MyAgedCare site here to help inform them if the time comes to make a decision regarding aged care services, by comparing providers based on key statistics across the sector.