industry & reform
“ The decisions are made based on profits , not people .
Profit before people ?
NSW inquiry calls for staff ratios to ease burden on the sector .
By Eleanor Campbell
In early June the NSW Legislative Committee published its final inquiry into the issue of chronic understaffing in aged care facilities . It found , as did the royal commission , that mandated staffing ratios and more registered nurses were urgently required .
When asked why aged care providers and the NSW government have yet to implement staffing ratios , despite the insurmountable evidence supporting its benefits , Dr Maree Bernoth had one simple answer
“ The reason we don ’ t have staffing ratios is because of the power of the for-profitsector in the aged-care industry .
“ The decisions are made based on profits , not people ,” she said .
Bernoth , an Associate Professor at Charles Sturt University and a registered nurse , participated in the upper-house probe . Last year , she spoke to Aged Care Insite about the dire need to attract and retain qualified workers in the sector .
“ We haven ’ t heard anything much after the aged care royal commission report was published ,” she said .
The Royal Commission gave us significant evidence as to the consequences of understaffing . Horrific stories of residents left for hours in their own faeces , excessive use of chemical and physical restraints and a slew of unreported sexual assaults rattled the nation .
Earlier this year , the Federal Budget offered the government ’ s solution to the problem , a $ 17.7 billion-dollar package wrapped in a five-year-rollout designed to overhaul the entire system . Its fifth and final pillar being a new Aged Care Act set to debut in 2023 .
Despite this , the recent State inquiry found that the “ shocking ” conditions faced by residents across residential homes in NSW had been worsening .
“ We were told about the increasing needs of patients with complex co-morbidities , yet there has been no increase in staff ,” wrote Chair of the NSW Legislative Council Courtney Houssos .
“ Instead , we heard that chronic underfunding , combined with the COVID-19 pandemic , has put an increasing burden on nursing and personal care staff .
“ What was clear in our inquiry was that it is getting worse , not better .”
One of the inquiry ’ s most critical revelations concerned the state government ’ s response to a deadly outbreak in a Western Sydney facility . Last year , Newmarch House saw 71 residents and workers infected , with 19 deaths among residents .
The report highlighted that NSW Health did not dispatch crisis or surge staff and had delayed issuing personal protective equipment . It was also found that staff shortages , due to quarantine conditions and a lack of employees provided by Anglicare , had exacerbated the situation .
According to an Anglicare surge worker , understaffing had also led to “ extremely poor care conditions ” for residents .
“ It is very hard to train up the agency staff and look after the residents at the same time ,” she told the Committee .
The chief executive of Anglicare , Grant Millard , went on to defend the recent decision to cut staff costs at Newmarch house given last year ’ s tragedy .
He told Committee members there was “ very little else ” that could have been done to ensure the organisation ’ s financial stability .
The inquiry also determined that the role of NSW Health in supporting the facility and its workers was insufficient .
“ The NSW government likes to boast about being leaders in things ,” Deputy Chair Mark Banasiak told Aged Care Insite . “ If there ’ s any one issue we should be leading in , it is how to look after our elderly .” Banasiak , a member of the Shooters , Fishers and Farmers Party , introduced the Public Health Amendment bill last year . He was one of the six of nine members who voted in favour of mandated staff ratios in NSW .
“ It ’ s one of those grey areas that both the federal government and the state government like to play off each other ,” he said .
While unpacking the findings of the committee , Banasiak revealed that no government entity , including the state , had made efforts to respond to the inquiry .
“ It ’ s also possible that they want to push it off for two years because that will push it into a new government , and then they don ’ t have to deal with it ,” he said .
Those opposing staff ratios included National Party member Wes Fang and Liberal Party members Natasha Maclaren- Jones and Taylor Martin . They did not respond to Aged Care Insite when asked to comment .
In a joint dissenting statement in the inquiry , the three contended that the issue should remain the Commonwealth ’ s business .
“ It is not appropriate for the NSW government to be legislating in an area of Commonwealth responsibility and should wait for their reforms and legislation to be introduced ,” they wrote .
The statement read that the state should hold off for two years until the Aged Care Act is implemented , a comment which has frustrated Greens Committee member Cate Faehrmann .
“ The safety and wellbeing of our nurses and their patients relies on adequate and safe staffing levels and this has been made clear , so there ’ s no reason to delay any longer .” ■
10 | nursingreview . com . au