South Australia Aged Care Home Star Ratings Guide 2024

The top rated and underperforming aged care homes across South Australia have been revealed. Search and see the list and watch our exclusive video.

Exclusive: More than half of all aged care homes in South Australia have seen an alarming rise in the proportion of residents given antipsychotic drugs without a prescription.

The latest data shows 8.6 per cent of residents were given the medication – often used as a sedative – without a doctor’s diagnosis over the course of a week in the recent quarter, up from 6.8 per cent in December of 2023.

Almost a third of the state’s aged care homes are performing worse than they did last year, according to the government’s official figures.

While six in 10 saw an improvement in their Star Rating – the measure the Department of Health and Aged Care uses to rate a facility – a significant number of Queensland’s facilities have seen a drop in their scores.

In good news for the state’s elderly, South Australia achieved a spot in the country’s top 10 with Jamestown Hospital and Health Service in Jamestown, the eight best facility in Australia. ACH Group Residential Care – Colton Court in Maclaren Vale came in at number 11.

Watch our video above on how to choose the best aged care home.

ACH Group Residential Care – Colton Court in Maclaren Vale is number 11 on the list.

The national trend shows an improvement in performance with the average overall Star Rating now 3.7, up from 3.5 last December. Every home is rated out of 5 based on compliance, staffing, quality and what the residents think of their home in an annual independent survey.

At the moment no homes in the country have an overall Star Rating of 1. Last year there were seven. While the number of homes with 5 stars jumped from 57 to 92.

However, the latest update in the Star Ratings data, comes as a leading advocacy group has questioned whether they truly represent how a home is performing.

Older Person’s Advocacy Network (OPAN) CEO Craig Gear said people are telling them that the ratings do not accurately reflect the quality of care provided to residents and that it “leads older people into a false sense of security”.

He said while OPAN acknowledges the challenges involved in rolling out the Star Ratings across the sector “improvements are urgently needed to restore trust in the system and to enable older people to make informed decisions about where they want to live”.

“The ratings system needs to evolve through continuous improvement to ensure credibility,” Mr Gear said.

Sue with her late husband. Picture: Supplied

Sue, who did not want to use her surname, said the Star Ratings are meaningless. Her late husband was in a 4 Star facility, but said his care was not up to scratch.

The 69-year-old from Tasmania said following a complaint to the watchdog about food options – her husband was a vegetarian – there were six months of negotiations which came to nothing, before the case was closed.

Sue said the regulator has “very limited power and there are no guaranteed outcomes and few consequences if aged care facilities and the management do not follow the government guidelines”.

Sue’s late husband was served this unappetising vegetarian pasty served in an aged care home. Picture: Supplied

He was also served this unappetising veggie roast on Christmas Day. Picture: Supplied

After the former special needs teacher died in June aged 73, Sue lodged another complaint, which is still ongoing.

“I wouldn’t trust the Star Ratings as they’re not necessarily a true reflection of care or what is actually going on day to day,” she said.

Peter Willcocks, 74, who is an independent advocate for older people, said he’d like to see all the complaints about each home made public for transparency.

The government acknowledges that the system can be improved and is currently looking to “refresh” the ratings criteria and is asking for feedback on proposals.

Aged Care Minister Anika Wells said since the creation of Star Ratings more than two years ago, the number of aged care homes with 4 and 5 stars has substantially improved.

“Our November data shows that 69 per cent of homes (1699 homes) are now delivering good or excellent care (4 and 5 stars), a 15 per cent improvement since December 2023,” Ms Wells said.

“We will continue to develop and refine Star Ratings so they provide the transparency that older people want when choosing their care.”

Originally published as South Australia Aged Care Home Star Ratings Guide 2024