General News
30 January, 2023
Dr Webster fights for aged care
Member for Mallee Anne Webster - Australia’s new Shadow Assistant Minister for Regional Health, following her promotion within the Coalition earlier this month - is now calling for the government to examine its aged care reforms. Dr Webster was...
Member for Mallee Anne Webster - Australia’s new Shadow Assistant Minister for Regional Health, following her promotion within the Coalition earlier this month - is now calling for the government to examine its aged care reforms.
Dr Webster was given the new portfolio after having served as Shadow Assistant Minister for Regional Development since June last year, and has made it her mission to see the aged care sector through a regional lens and abandon the "cookie cutter" approach to legislation of Aged Care centres.
“I’m so excited to be able to focus on developing health policy for those who live in regional Australia,” Dr Webster said.
“Healthcare is something I’m incredibly passionate about because it affects every single Australian.
“As we experience across Mallee, there are significant barriers to accessing timely and affordable healthcare."
Dimboola’s Allambi Elderly Peoples Home announced its closure due to becoming unviable under the new registered nurse and care minutes policy settings.
Meanwhile, the chief executives of Minyip’s Dunmunkle Lodge and Donald’s Johnson-Goodwin Memorial Homes have raised their concerns with Dr Webster about the ongoing operation of their 38-bed facilities.
“These organisations, and many of similar size across Australia, are not against change or providing better outcomes for their residents,” Dr Webster said.
“But these sweeping industry wide reforms don’t take that into account, they are a case of ticking a box on paper without looking at the practical reality of care in these settings.”
In a speech to Parliament in 2019, Dr Webster said a person’s health status should not be determined by their postcode.
“Unfortunately, this is not the case, though I fervently believe it should be, and I look forward to working with Shadow Minister for Health Anne Ruston to achieve better outcomes for all Australians, wherever they live.”
The reforms follow the recommendations out of the Royal Commission into Aged Care that concluded in 2021.
Dr Webster said it had become apparent following discussions with smaller aged care homes that some of the recommendations were creating concerns.
“These homes are planning how to provide minimum nursing and care minutes per day for each resident, including having a Registered Nurse in their facilities 24/7,” Dr Webster said.
“With a thin labour market making recruiting difficult for all industries, and with already strained budgets to meet those staffing levels, there is a risk these centres will not be viable going forward.
“This puts the future of residents and existing staff, some of whom have been living in their local communities for decades, in doubt.”
Dr Webster said both the Donald and Minyip organisations had five to six Registered Nurses among their staff living in close proximity to the facility. These nurses manage resident care plans and clinical needs, as well as communicating with doctors and allied health professionals.
“These duties are primarily carried out on weekdays, with the nurses operating on-call outside of that,” Dr Webster said.
“They live five minutes away if needed, and this is a system that has worked very well in these facilities for years.
“Why should a system that works and keeps local people in care in their own town be closed down because of bureaucratic and inflexible red tape?”
Dr Webster has been in contact with Federal Minister for Aged Care Anika Wells on behalf of the Donald and Minyip facilities, relaying their concerns and calling for action.
“It is time for the Federal Government to take a step back and look at the true cost of this legislation,” she said.
“If smaller aged care centres are still providing excellent care for residents in their own town, then we need to look at ways to ensure that can remain the case.
“Closing facilities down and relocating residents is not the answer. It is not the answer for the resident. It is not the answer for the families and friends of that resident, and it is not the answer for all the staff from that small town who provide that care.”