Eldercare's position on aged care matters

Eldercare respects the rights of residents to exercise self-determination and autonomous decision making in the delivery of their care, including palliative and end of life care.

Eldercare believes residents should have the right to choose to access all available healthcare options under law, including voluntary assisted dying.

Residents who choose to access voluntary assisted dying will be treated with the same dignity, respect and compassion afforded to all residents throughout their end-of-life journey.

All Eldercare sites provide an additional services package to all residents as part of our service offer. Additional services must be services that are above the requirements set out in the Aged Care Act’s specified services.

Eldercare promotes an environment that focuses on person-centred, restraint-free strategies, rather than medication, to assist residents that are experiencing serious agitation or distress.

Relevant Eldercare employees have been trained in non-pharmacological strategies to support residents who may experience agitation or distress. Eldercare only supports the use of anti-psychotics as an absolute last resort when all alternatives have been explored or when a resident has been diagnosed with a medical condition that requires this medical treatment.

Consent must be given by the resident (if they have capacity to do so) or by the resident’s legal representative before any treatment is provided and under the direction of the resident’s General Practitioner or Medical Specialist.

Eldercare understands that being environmentally responsible is an important part of our business. We have a plan to reduce our energy and emissions intensity, and other significant environmental impacts. Eldercare also accepts responsibility for supporting our people to take action in caring for our environment.

Eldercare is committed to ensuring that all our aged care homes maintain full accreditation with the Aged Care Quality & Safety Commission. Eldercare has a strong compliance program across the organisation.

Eldercare is committed to creating a service culture where consumers are actively involved in the decisions that impact their health and wellbeing outcomes. Eldercare has a consumer engagement strategy and plan in place.

Eldercare’s Corporate Governance Framework guides the Board, Executive and Management of Eldercare to ensure that the organisation has the systems and processes in place to achieve the organisation’s purpose, values, and strategic directions and that they are held to account for the achievement of these.

The Eldercare Board has a corporate social responsibility strategy and plan. Corporate social responsibility is acknowledged as being critical for the company to achieve “good governance.” It is acknowledged that Eldercare has a responsibility to be socially and environmentally responsible.

Eldercare is committed to ensuring the health and safety of our residents and employees, as well as the family and friends of our residents, employees and volunteers. When necessary, residents will be cared for in isolation, in their bedrooms, with employees using the required personal protective equipment (PPE) to protect their health and to prevent the transmission of COVID to other residents.

Visit Eldercare's response to COVID-19 page to learn more.

Eldercare is committed to provide flexibility to retirees by offering various DMF retentions dependant on contract types. There will be no ‘hidden costs.’

We welcome and respect the diversity that our residents, staff, and volunteers bring to Eldercare. We encourage and expect respectful behaviour from everyone who lives, works, and visits Eldercare. We do not accept any form of behaviour that vilifies or discriminates against someone else based on their beliefs, gender, sexuality, race, or ethnicity.

Eldercare supports our lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender diverse, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ) residents, staff, and volunteers to ensure they feel welcomed and safe. We are pleased to be accredited under the Rainbow Tick Program.

Eldercare is committed to working in partnership with our residents and their families to ensure that we provide satisfactory responses to concerns raised. Eldercare encourages residents and/ or family members to approach Eldercare in the first instance if they have concerns.

Eldercare is committed to achieving gender equity within our business, we believe that talent is gender neutral. Eldercare has policies and procedures in place to support gender equity.

Eldercare’s core business is residential aged care and retirement living. Eldercare has made the decision to grow these areas as entering the home care sector now, without being able to build scale quickly, may compromise Eldercare’s success. This position may be reviewed in the future.

Eldercare is committed to preparing fresh meals and snacks on site for our residents. We provide our residents, wherever possible, with locally sourced food and drinks that make up a well-balanced diet. This is good for our residents’ health and wellbeing – and good for South Australia.

We are committed to a seamless approach to resident care which includes hospitality services.

Eldercare has a strict policy that medications are only administered by Nurses. Eldercare has a strong view that qualified health professionals should be managing medication administration for optimal resident safety and health outcomes.

As an alternative to physical restraint, Eldercare uses a variety of strategies to keep residents safe and to meet their individual needs. We do not use bedrails in any circumstances.

Eldercare has a zero tolerance to any form of elder abuse and takes strong action to prevent this abuse and to support older people who have been abused.

Eldercare has a zero tolerance to any form of violence against women and children. Eldercare is a White Ribbon Accredited workplace and is proud to be part of this international movement aimed at stopping violence against women and children.

Eldercare does not support the view that unqualified care staff should be employed in Aged Care services. Eldercare requires a minimum qualification of certificate III for personal care staff.

Eldercare has always been strongly connected with the Uniting Church in South Australia

Eldercare is guided and motivated by the core values of our organisation (respect, accountability, and connection) and by the Christian principles of the Uniting Church.

Eldercare is a Company Limited by Guarantee. The Uniting Church of Australia has no ownership of Eldercare’s assets or business, authority or involvement (direct or indirect) in Eldercare’s decision making, control of its management, or implementation of its Objects or its affairs.

CCTV monitoring can be extremely useful when used appropriately. CCTV devices are placed in various locations around Eldercare residential care homes, e.g., corridors, stairwells, entry/exit doors, carparks and memory support unit-shared dining and living areas.

Eldercare has a program to install more CCTV across all our aged care homes’ public areas for safety and security monitoring purposes. Specific requests to install CCTV in resident rooms will be considered on a case-by-case basis by the Chief Executive. Legal requirements must be met before CCTV is installed in resident rooms.

Eldercare was supportive of this Royal Commission. The Commission provided an opportunity to engage in a much-needed, constructive national discussion about the value of older people and the future of aged care. Eldercare believes that it highlighted the valued and important contribution of thousands of workers and volunteers working in aged care.

Eldercare supports tertiary students being placed in Aged Care to complete their “practical” components of their courses.

We are committed to supporting the development of skills and knowledge in the aged care industry’s future workforce by providing exposure to purposeful learning experiences on placement and creating passion for working in the aged care industry.