Six NSW aged care homes fail non compliance order, sanctioned for not meeting standards

A number of aged care homes in NSW have been sanctioned for their failure to comply with standards of care. See the full list.

Six aged care homes in NSW have been sanctioned for their failure to comply with aged care standards, amid reports of residents being left with untreated wounds and waiting six days for hospital referrals after sustaining serious injuries.

Residents were found with bed sores, or had diabetes that was not properly managed; others were losing weight or did not receive adequate pain relief, and some were chemically restrained.

Despite a Royal Commission and billions of dollars in extra funding, the latest aged care compliance data shows between July 2022 and 30 April 2023 more than 1227 problems were recorded in aged care services around the country.

Even though some aged care providers had multiple reports detailing problems they were allowed to continue to operate.

Audits of homes found staff shortages and unqualified staff, and there were carers at some centres who did not understand medications or how to manage the behavioural problems of residents.

At various points during the nine month period, 79 homes around the country were found in such serious breach of aged care standards they would have qualified for a one star rating under the new Star Ratings system that commenced in December last year.

Macleay House in Frederickton was one of the six homes named.

In NSW six homes – Anglican Care Storm Village in Taree, Bupa Waratah in Newcastle, Burrowa House in Boorowa, Macleay House in Fredrickton on the mid north coast, Marco Polo Woonona Care Services and Residential Gardens were subject to the most serious non compliance order – a sanction for failure to comply with aged care standards.

Sanctions were imposed on the Bupa Waratah home in Newcastle in July 2022 after an aged care compliance team found “clinical care delivery was not always effective in relation to restrictive practices, the management of pain, wounds, medications, falls, weight loss, delirium, skin integrity, behaviour including the development of behaviour support plans, and response to clinical deterioration”.

It found a resident who fell was not transferred to hospital for six days, despite pleas to be taken there, and they were subsequently found to have sustained a serious injury.

Anglican Care Storm Village in Taree.

Some residents were refused pain relief. Others were not given enough to drink.

Bupa said the sanction was lifted earlier this year and the government’s My Aged Care website now gives the home a three star rating.

“Waratah received a sanction a year ago in July 2022, and it expired in October 2022. Since this time, we’ve seen significant improvement on all fronts and this is reflected in recent outstanding feedback from our residents and their families. Our team at Waratah remain focused on providing the highest quality care,” a spokesperson for Bupa said.

Other homes with less serious breaches have been included on the list in the table below.

Sanctions were imposed on the Anglican Care Storm Village in Taree in January 2023 after an audit found residents in the service had a large number of pressure wounds which were not identified until they were at a late stage.

Three residents had suffered unaddressed weight loss.

Some residents were chemically restrained without planning or guidance on when the practice should be used.

Ongoing severe pain was not managed.

Residential gardens aged care in Rooty Hill.

The service had a high number of medication incidents which were not reported or investigated appropriately, including some medications being out of stock.

A resident who developed a respiratory infection was not tested for Covid for days before being found positive.

“For several other consumers, increases in their pain levels, deterioration of wounds, signs of pneumonia, weight loss, and overall decline in health status was not responded to in a timely manner,” the report said.

It also reported most outdoor areas were overgrown with weeds and had dirty outdoor furniture, cobwebs, debris and mould.

“The service did not have sufficient numbers of staff to consistently deliver safe and quality care and services. Consumers losing weight due to insufficient assistance with meals, continence care, long waits for assistance, personal care not delivered in accordance with preferences, and medications administered late,” the report said.

The home currently has a one star rating on the government’s My Aged care website which says “Significant Improvement Needed”.

An Anglican Care spokesperson said the organisation “is working closely with the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission (ACQSC) on continuous improvements.”

“Anglican Care supports the ACQSC’s audit and monitoring processes and is deeply invested in ensuring quality care for all its aged care residents,” the spokesperson said.

Burrowa House in Boorowa had sanctions imposed on it in September 2022 after an audit found it had untrained staff who were not able to show they had the knowledge or skills to support residents with post falls management, wound management or personal care.

Staff did not have knowledge of proper use of antibiotics, and there was contradictory information on whether people were chemically restrained or had pressure wounds.

Despite continuing concerns, on May 3 the home had a three star rating on the government’s My Aged care website and was found “acceptable”.

In December sanctions were imposed on Macleay House in Fredrickton on the mid north coast after an audit found “there is an immediate and severe risk to the safety, health or wellbeing of care recipients to whom the approved provider is providing care”.

Under the sanction it was not eligible to receive Commonwealth subsidies for new residents for three months.

Multiple checks on the home found staff did not treat residents with dignity and respect, residents’ wounds were not properly managed and many residents were losing weight.

One resident had a wound that was not identified until it had significantly deteriorated, and another resident was chemically restrained.

The audit found there were concerns about the competency of the workforce.

On May 2 the home was given a one star rating on the government’s My Aged Care website which says “significant improvement needed”.

Marco Polo Woonona now has a three star rating but it was sanctioned after an audit in October 2022 found it posed an “immediate and severe risk” to the safety, health or wellbeing of care recipients.

Residential gardens in Rooty Hill had sanctions imposed in September 2022 after it was found not to comply with any of the eight aged care standards.

Resident injuries were not monitored and their care plans were not updated to reflect diabetes management or recommendations by doctors.

“Pressure injuries were not identified until they were stage three and skin breakdown was not identified until it was found to have necrotic areas,” the audit report found.

The home now has a three star rating on the government’s My Aged Care website and is rated as “acceptable”.

In December the Australian Government introduced Star Ratings for aged care homes to help people better compare providers.

Compliance is one of the four key areas of performance that make up the overall Star Rating.

Major reforms to aged care are underway with the May budget funding a 15 per cent pay rise for aged care workers.

From July aged care homes will be required to have a nurse on site 24 hours a day, although the government has admitted staff shortages will make this hard to enforce.

From October 1 residents will have to receive at least 200 care minutes per day, including 40 minutes with a nurse.

The Australian Government is also spending $12.9 million to fund a complaints service about food in aged care as well as introducing new nutrition standards.

Aged Care Quality and Safety Commissioner Janet Anderson said the commission was increasing its monitoring of the sector.

“In the 2022-23 financial year (to 31 March 2023), the Commission conducted over 1400 more visits to aged care services across Australia, across all service types, than for the same period in the 2021-22 financial year (1 July 2021 to 31 March 2022),” she said.

“This higher level of monitoring gives us greater confidence that we are identifying instances of noncompliance. In bringing these to a provider’s attention, we are essentially presenting them with both a clear expectation and an opportunity to change what they are doing and improve the outcomes for people in their care,” she said.

Where there is clear evidence of persistent disregard by a provider of their obligations, the Commission will draw on all available compliance and enforcement tools, including sanctions, to ensure that consumers are kept safe, she said.

“We can and often do also determine a shorter accreditation period for a residential service where we find noncompliance (ie. for a period significantly less than three years). This means that the service will undergo another full site audit sooner than would otherwise be the case,” she said.