General News
12 July, 2023
Aberlea masterplan to bolster aged care
ABERLEA has received funding support to set in motion the development of a master plan, which chief executive officer (CEO) David Knight believes will build upon the site’s recent accreditation and four-star aged care rating.
ABERLEA has received funding support to set in motion the development of a master plan, which chief executive officer (CEO) David Knight believes will build upon the site’s recent accreditation and four-star aged care rating.
Aberlea had sought $40,000 in this year’s Moyne Shire Council Budget toward the development of the master plan, which is expected to cost in excess of $80,000. While the full funding was not granted, councillors resolved to contribute a capped amount of $20,000.
Moyne Shire Council deputy mayor Daniel Meade spoke in favour of granting the funding.
He noted the closure of Terang’s May Noonan aged care facility was going to increase pressure on surrounding providers.
“With regard to this side of the shire we see Terang losing its facility, so I think there will be extra pressure on Aberlea,” Cr Meade said.
“To be able to put $20,000 towards a strategic plan provides assistance for the Mortlake aged care facility and senior community.”
Aberlea CEO David Knight welcomed the funding, saying Aberlea was committed to ensuring it remained in a strong position well in to the future.
“We thank the councillors for their support of us and the Mortlake community in understanding what this site could be in the future,” he said.
“What a master plan is, to me, is looking at the feasibility of various options and understanding the options.
“It gives me, as a CEO, a document that directs me; I have my ideas about what we might like to do, but instead of doing a hodgepodge piece here and there we can develop a greater vision for the site and the land.
“We want to understand what we could be for the community without preconceived ideas, that can increase the community’s access to us which can help to establish us as the leader of aged care in
the Mortlake community.”Mr Knight said any plans for Aberlea would be extensively based on what needs the community identifies, believing the aged care industry was at its strongest when the community was directly involved.
He said he wanted to approach the process with no preconceived notions, with an open mind to what the findings would be; be the plan moving forward small, medium or large in scale.
“The master plan will probably spit out a number of projects, which could be the expansion of our aged care or the development of assisted living, it could be a community hub or some kind of allied health rooms or space,” Mr Knight said.
“Once the master plan tells us what is best suited for us to thrive, once we’ve heard from the community, we can investigate that option.
“Of course, each project will have a dollar figure attached and I think that’s very important to at least know what we’re dealing with and if we should lobby for support for various projects or the whole piece.
“At least we would know what we were working towards; and if the opportunity for government funding or grants arises, we’re ready to go.”
Mr Knight said the existing site has received investment over the past 30 years and was “built to last,” but the development of the master plan was part of efforts to “keep updated and stay ahead of
the curve”.
“Ultimately you don’t want to get in to a position where your site is beyond repair,” he said.
“If you don’t invest in the capital side in the medium to long term, you find yourself having to start from scratch all over again.
“That’s not the way we wish to operate.”
Mr Knight said about 70 per cent of the aged care industry loses money, and providers were not banking profits in to earnings each year, which made government expenditure on keeping facilities fit-for-purpose a vital step to ensuring the long-term future of care.
He said May Noonan had been an example where capital investment had not been made over the years; by the time the facility needed improvement to meet standards, the required cost to do so was becoming insurmountable.
“We just had a big federal government payout in the form of an up-to 15 per cent pay rise for all direct care staff,” Mr Knight said.
“We’re starting to see investment in the operation, which is the best thing to happen to aged care in my 20 years, but in my view, it doesn’t fix the capital operation.
“We can break even but if you get to the point your facility is no longer compliant, where does the big amount to address that come from?
“It’s a delicate balance; and I think the big challenge for the industry moving forward is securing capital investment.”
Aberlea will approach the master plan from a position of strength, having recently received a four-star rating after earlier this year receiving full accreditation by the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission.
The five-star based rating system involves detailed assessment of each organisation based on compliance, quality measures, residents experience and staffing.
This included high marks from residents including 100 per cent resident satisfaction to feeling they are getting the care they need, feeling safe, being treated with respect and feeling the staff are kind and caring.
With a new resident expected to have joined Aberlea by the time this publication goes to print, Aberlea is expected to be operating at 100 per cent capacity and has consistently remained above 90 per cent.
“It has been hard work, but we’re certainly very fortunate,” Mr Knight said.
“We do have issues we’ve had to work really hard on, such as retention of staff, but we’re very comfortable.
“We think we’re about to reach full nurse requirement, and very close to meeting the 24/7 requirement for nurses, so we do battle for staff but our issues are no different to anybody else.
“We’re really conscious that there is more work to be done, but we are confident in the improvements we have been making.”