news
Provider rebrands
New name and uniforms for RSL Care and RDNS .
RSL Care and RDNS will now be known as Bolton Clarke . The organisation was formed following a merger between the two providers in 2015 . Chief executive Stephen Muggleton said while the previous names served the respective organisations well in their own markets , the group faced difficulty when the names were operating in the same streams , and added that staff were working in the same places under different brands .
“ We needed to position a new , elegant brand across the group for cohesion , almost to complete the merger but also , importantly , to position us to have the one brand across a range of different service streams ,” Muggleton said .
The team looked to the history of both organisations to define the new brand and drew from its early leaders .
Philanthropist Lady Janet Clarke , born in 1851 , became president of the Melbourne District Nursing Society ( later RDNS ) in 1889 .
Muggleton said Clarke opened up her home to serve meals to and support the sick-poor .
“ Supporting the sick-poor in Melbourne still remains in our group constitution today ,” he said .
Lieutenant colonel William Kinsey Bolton , born in 1860 , was a returned serviceman and Gallipoli veteran who in 1916 became the first president of the Returned Sailors ’ and Soldiers ’ Imperial League ( forerunner of the RSL ). Muggleton said there is still a ridge on the right flank of ANZAC Cove named after him .
He said the new name reflects where the organisation has come from but also positions it for growth moving forward .
Today , Bolton Clarke employs more than 6500 staff who make over four million client visits every year in Australia , New Zealand , the UK and China , and support more than 22,000 veterans annually and over 5600 residents in retirement living and residential care communities .
Muggleton said Bolton Clarke is starting to see the results of the merger and is able to scale a range of services in different geographies .
“ For example , we ’ re using the RSL Care building capability to undertake new integrated service developments in Melbourne . We ’ ve got a big integrated site coming out of the ground in Bundoora , another one in St Kilda and one in Box Hill , so we ’ re starting to use the residential aged care in Melbourne . RSL Care has benefited enormously from some of the expertise that RDNS offers , both in terms of its research institute [ now named the Bolton Clarke Research Institute ], but also its training and community care expertise in Queensland .” ■
Merger announced
Joint company will own and operate 35 residential services in Victoria .
BlueCross and Sapphire Care have announced they are set to merge . The companies will combine business operations in the coming months and anticipate completion later this year .
The two providers made the announcement via a joint communiqué penned by BlueCross chairman David Eccles and Sapphire Care chairman Tony Battle . They said the boards of both organisations believe the merger provides a strategic platform to leverage growth and market opportunities to meet the needs of ageing Australians .
Current BlueCross chief executive Alan Lilly will lead the newly merged company .
Lilly , a registered psychiatric nurse and adjunct professor with the Australian Catholic University , said both providers have a strong focus on culture , adding that , as a result of the merger , the team will be able to pick the best systems that BlueCross and Sapphire Care are currently using .
The joint company will own and operate 35 residential services across metropolitan Melbourne , Phillip Island and Kilmore . The provider has more than 2630 residential care beds and a pipeline of more than 500 new beds to become active in the next two years , as well as a home care service delivering care to more than 1000 community clients .
Lilly confirmed that frontline services will remained unchanged and that head office will see the most change , as the team streamlines systems and processes .
“ We have set up a streamlined process for issues and questions to be escalated in a timely manner and we ’ ve already provided staff with FAQs which will be updated regularly ,” he added .
“ We will support staff during this change , and regularly consult and communicate with them .”
The new amalgamation is anticipating significant growth in home care and respite services , as well as continued growth in specialist services .
“ We ’ re aiming to be an Employer of Choice , and our new [ enterprise bargaining agreement ] for the first time includes provisions for parental leave , and we have also introduced a salary packaging program for our staff which is fully funded by the organisation ,” Lilly added .
He said the team is focused on ensuring the merger is successful and will do whatever it takes to get there .
“ Our culture will define us , and we ’ re committed to being a great place to learn and work . Living our values is at the heart of what we do every day .” ■
2 agedcareinsite . com . au