‘Serious concerns’ over Bupa aged care facility in SA

There are “serious concerns” over a Bupa aged care facility in South Australia, with the centre failing half of its standards — and now the federal watchdog has gotten involved.

• Three state-run facilities sanctioned
• Ira Parker Nursing Home slapped with sanctions
• January: Five SA homes sanctioned
• Oakden whistleblower on how her persistence lifted lid on abuse

Trouble-plagued aged care provider Bupa’s issues in the eastern states have flowed through to South Australia, with the company’s Campbelltown facility sanctioned by the aged care watchdog.

It’s the 12th Bupa facility sanctioned across the country in the last 12 months, prompting calls from an aged care advocate for stronger financial penalties for providers who consistently fail to meet standards.

The facility was sanctioned in May after failing 22 of 44 standards, with the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission holding “serious concerns” about areas including pain and medication management, nutrition and hydration, staff development and behavioural management.

The sanctions came just seven months after it met all 44 standards and had its accreditation for three years extended following an audit last October.

It’s Bupa’s latest facility to be sanctioned and its 12th since July 2018, with sanctioned facilities in Victoria, NSW, Tasmania and the ACT.

A resident at one of those facilities — in Eden, NSW — was hospitalised in March after maggots were found in his head.

In April, Bupa was taken to court by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission for allegedly charging residents at 21 of its 78 homes, in NSW, Victoria, Queensland and Tasmania, for services it did not provide.

Aged care advocate Stewart Johnston — whose mother Helen was allegedly assaulted at the Oakden nursing home — said he was concerned about the Campbelltown facility and labelled Bupa a “cancer on the aged care sector”.

He said the punishment for sanctioned facilities needed to be beefed up, suggesting members of a provider’s board should be charged or fined if its facilities were frequently sanctioned.

“Bupa keep getting handed sanctions without any real change in their operations. They just treat them like lollies,” he said.

“Now it’s reached SA someone has to step in.”

A Bupa spokeswoman said it took the sanctions imposed against its facilities “extremely seriously”.

“Our residents deserve better and we are genuinely sorry that in a number of our homes we have fallen short of the high standards we expect,” she said.

“These are serious matters and they take time to address. We are committed to fixing them in a sustainable manner. We won’t walk away from the work that needs to be done.”

The spokeswoman said it was reviewing residents’ care plans at its Campbelltown facility, recruiting extra staff and “undertaking a thorough training and education program”.

A federal health department spokesman said it and the Aged Care Safety and Quality Commission were “working closely together … to ensure people at the Bupa sanctioned services are safe, receive good care and any concerns are promptly resolved”.

“The Department has implemented an engagement strategy with Bupa leadership to monitor the national response that the organisation is implementing to return to compliance. These conversations are ongoing,” he said.

Originally published as ‘Serious concerns’ over Bupa aged care facility in SA