royal commission
ANMF federal secretary Annie Butler. Photo: Kym Smith.
Royal commission update
Commission looks at staffing, pay
and tech before being shut down.
By Conor Burke and Dallas Bastian
COVID-19: Royal commission
suspended, new restrictions
The Royal Commission into Aged Care
Quality and Safety has suspended all
hearings and workshops due to the spread
of COVID-19.
In a statement, the royal commission
said the decision would affect all hearings,
workshops and group consultations until at
least the end of May 2020.
The commissioners said they were
considering the implications of this
decision on the schedule and added the
future work program would be informed by
public health advice.
They added: “Meaningful engagement
with the sector is paramount to the work
of the royal commission’s inquiry into
aged care quality and safety, which is why
we have decided to suspend all hearings
and workshops. We must allow service
providers and government to focus fully on
their response to the pandemic.”
They also recognised that substantial
efforts are being made by aged care
service providers and health services, and
their staff, to support the needs of older
people during the coronavirus crisis.
The announcement came just days
before Prime Minister Scott Morrison
announced tighter restrictions to slow the
spread of the virus.
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agedcareinsite.com.au
From midday on Monday 23
March, all pubs, clubs, gyms, indoors
sporting venues, cinemas, casinos and
entertainment venues were closed.
Restaurants and cafes were restricted to
takeaway or home delivery.
The government expects the measures
to remain in place for at least six months.
Schools remained open across most of
Australia, with the exception of Victoria,
which moved forward its Easter break.
Parents in NSW were encouraged to keep
their children at home.
In a statement, Morrison thanked
members of the public who were adhering
to social distancing measures but scolded
those who were ignoring advice.
“Leaders expressed their
disappointment at some members of the
community who are disregarding social
distancing measures and, by doing so,
putting the lives of older and vulnerable
Australians at risk,” he said.
“If we want to slow the spread, everyone
must implement appropriate social
distancing in accordance with state and
territory laws.”
Royal commission urges mandatory staff
minimums, better pay for aged care
The royal commission has urged the aged
care sector to reform its approach to the
workforce, with counsel assisting Peter
Rozen telling those gathered that “the time
for action … is now”.
At the third Adelaide hearing, Rozen
handed the commission a submission
made by the counsels assisting which
said that the sector should be subject
to mandatory minimum staffing
requirements and to make sure there is an
RN on duty for every shift, among other
recommendations.
“The staff in our aged care homes … are
not well paid. All too often, there are not
enough of them to provide the care they
would like to – for example, to sit and have
a chat over a cup of tea,” Rozen told the
commissioners.
“Many work in stressful and sometimes
unsafe workplaces; some are untrained,
and others have inadequate training.
As a community, we owe these
workers a lot.”
The submission also stated that RNs and
NPs should make up a greater proportion
of the workforce, that regulated care
workers should be registered and show a
minimum qualification level, and that all
aged care workers should be better paid
and trained.
Rozen said that, ultimately, change
in the sector will occur only if those in
leadership positions change their approach
to aged care.
“The organisations for which they work
should be better managed and better
governed. And finally, the Australian
government should provide practical
leadership in relation to all these things,”
he said.
The submission was welcomed by
the Australian Nursing and Midwifery
Federation (ANMF), which has for a long
time called for minimum staffing levels and
nurse-to-patient ratios.
ANMF federal secretary Annie Butler
said: “On behalf of our members
working in aged care, the ANMF
welcomes Mr Rozen’s practical
recommendations put forward to the
royal commissioners.
“As we’ve heard from our members in
aged care and in the harrowing evidence
from residents and their families, workforce
issues, particularly inadequate staffing
levels, have been the cause for much of
their pain and suffering.
“The ANMF supports Mr Rozen’s
recommendations to mandate the
minimum numbers of nurses and qualified
care staff that would be rostered, ensuring
better, safer, continuity of care for
residents.
“Better wages, training and regulation
would also improve the retention and
recruitment of the beleaguered aged care
workforce.”