Aged care meals breach ‘human rights’, as photos reveal what residents are being served

Experts sent in to improve the food in some of Australia’s aged care homes say meals are so bad, the human rights of vulnerable residents are not being met. SEE THE PHOTOS.

Miserly pieces of meat, unrecognisable pureed slop and pre-bought party pies and fish fingers are some of the disgraceful offerings on menus at aged care homes, insiders reveal.

Dietitians Australia CEO Robert Hunt said half of all residents have malnutrition and believes some providers are spending as little as $4 a day, per person, on food.

He said the average was around $6 a day, compared with prisoners who get $10 a day.

“It’s a shame that our nation would spend $10 a day feeding prisoners and only $6 a day feeding our elderly,” Mr Hunt said.

A pureed meal, sometimes staff can’t identify what they’re serving.

A main evening meal of pasta.

In a diary entry on a blog called Residents’ Matter, one Victorian woman called Joan, who did not want to be identified for fear of retribution, said she had been complaining about the food ever since she arrived, but nothing had changed.

She revealed one lunch was chips and a vegie pattie containing less than a teaspoon of peas and corn. And it arrived cold.

She said it “might have a fancy name but tastes nothing like it should”.

“For dinner I will have soup, a small amount in a little dish,” she wrote.

“I haven’t had a proper roast potato since I got here, or roasted meat, it’s all slow cooked for eight hours and it’s tasteless.”

Small serves of a main meal.

Often the staff serving can’t explain what it is, says a dietitian.

Mr Hunt said the Government introduced a $10 supplement after the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety lifted the lid on the pittance providers spend on food.

However, he said there was lots of evidence that the $10 supplement was being spent on other costs other than food and that the pandemic had “amplified the issue 100 fold”.

“The issue of malnutrition and starvation is a sleeper in groups such as the elderly, disability sector, first nations and hospitals,” he said.

He said the group was calling for the Government to introduce better reporting of how the $10 is spent, as well as undertaking malnutrition assessments to determine which residents are at risk.

He also said accredited dietitians could help solve a lot of the issues, with annual checks and help cooks plan menus.

Advanced accredited dietitian Julie Dundon, whose job it is to visit failing homes, said cooks are often untrained and what is served is often so bad residents stop eating.

Residents say the food is often tasteless.

Cheap filler up food is used, and little protein.

She said others become “institutionalised” and get used to the small quantities, which can lead to weight and strength loss, and more injuries.

“Very often the meat that goes with the main meal is small and does not meet their nutritional needs,” Ms Dundon said.

A small bowl of soup is offered.

A ‘fresh’ fruit bowl.

“In the evenings when there are not so many staff, the food can be party pies or fish fingers, bought in and reheated and perhaps a small bowl of soup.”

Those who have difficulty eating or swallowing and need soft textures, often get a plate of different coloured pureed scoops, but the staff serving are not always able to tell them what it is.

Advanced accredited dietitian Julie Dundon goes into homes to advise how to improve food.

“I’ve seen staff mix it all together so it looks like brown sludge,” she said.

Ms Dundon said some providers were doing a good job, but many were not. She said having access to proper food was a “human right”.

Senior Australians and Aged Care Services Minister Richard Colbeck said

the nutritional needs of older people in care have been prioritised by the Morrison Government with the $10 supplement, “part of the overall $18.3 billion response to improve the quality of care across the sector”.

He said the Department expects to see significant improvements in quality services by providers.

Originally published as Aged care meals breach ‘human rights’, as photos reveal what residents are being served