Individual targets for every Australian aged care home

Every aged care home has its own target for how many minutes of care they have to give. See how many minutes you’re entitled to receive.

Residents in aged care homes received on average six minutes less care than mandated, according to a new report.

How each aged care home performed against its own individual targets will be released next week.

From July 1 aged care homes have been required to have a registered nurse onsite 24/7. It was a recommendation from the Royal Commission and an Albanese election pledge.

From October 1, the government also set requirements for each aged care resident to receive, on average, 200 minutes of care per day, including 40 minutes of registered nurse time.

A report by the Auditor General released ahead of the data found the aged care minutes targets had been “largely effective”, but said “established Australian Government mechanisms for analysing the costs, benefits and risks of policy options were not fully used”.

Data on how aged care facilities are performing will be released next week.

Small residential facilities in rural and remote areas have struggled to find a registered nurse, and have been given exemptions, but are still required to hit their care minutes target.

Around 50 facilities have exemptions at the moment.

Critics have blamed the closure of some aged care facilities on the new targets, saying that it had been impossible for some providers to find registered nurses during a workforce shortage especially in some regional and rural areas.

The audit report said as of September, 88 per cent of residential aged care homes in Australia reported that they had a registered nurse on duty 24/7, compared with government estimates ranging from 46 per cent to 80 per cent in 2020 to 2022.

On average 194 minutes of care was provided per resident per day in April to June 2023, compared to estimates of 180 minutes in 2018 to 2019.

Aged Care Minister Anika Wells during Question Time at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Martin Ollman

On average 37 minutes of registered nurse care was provided per resident per day in April to June 2023, compared to estimates of 36 minutes in 2018 to 2019.

Aged Care Minister Anika Wells said they were near to hitting their target.

“I am particularly pleased to see care minutes increase to 194 minutes for the last quarter of the year, showing that the sector average of 200 care minutes is well within grasp,” Minister Wells said.

Meanwhile, the government has published a list of the individual targets for every aged care facility in the country.

We have compiled a searchable table so you can find out what you’re entitled to at your aged care home.

The targets range from on average 122.11 minutes of care per day at the low care facility, Kaniva Hostel in Victoria, to 317 minutes a day at Calvary Central Park in Windsor, Victoria.

Originally published as Individual targets for every Australian aged care home