4 Star rating for aged care home failing to comply with standards
Moving into residential aged care is a huge decision.
You and your loved ones will need all available information so that you can be assured the aged care home you choose will be the right one and that you/your loved one will be safe, well cared for and happy.
My Aged Care (MAC) gives aged care homes a ‘star rating’ from one to five. It is meant to make it easy for consumers.
Great idea, right?
An easy ratings system. Like restaurant and accommodation rating guides or any review sites that we’re used to checking before spending our money. But unlike those choices the stakes are incredibly high. It could even be a life-or-death decision, depending on the quality of care you/your loved one will receive.
So, it would be reasonable to expect that the information on MAC is accurate and current, with full transparency of any issues that the aged care home may have.
But the star ratings cannot be trusted.
Our clients are shocked that Glenview Community Services in Southern Tasmania which has a 4-star rating, also has an Enforceable Undertaking with the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission (ACQSC)!
The two aged care homes in Tasmania covered by the Enforceable Undertaking both have 4-star (good) ratings on the MAC website for their compliance with the aged care quality standards.
We know that this is not the case.
We know that there have been failures, and our clients are despairing this these things continue to happen. In Glenview’s case there have been critical failures relating to continence management and residents’ freedoms (among other things).
But the star ratings for compliance for these aged care homes have not been updated since 13 January 2024 for one, and the other since 2 April 2023. That is nearly two years ago.
The MAC website says: ‘A 4-star rating means that the provider has had no compliance issues for 1 year’. But if this information has not been updated for nearly two years, how are consumers meant to make informed choices about where to live, and who to put their trust in?
There is no requirement for Enforceable Undertakings to be published on the MAC website, because officially they are not ‘formal sanctions.’
Formally on the MAC website, the two aged care homes have ‘no compliance issues’ currently. You would have no idea unless you knew where to look. These agreements simply allow providers to fly under the radar.
The star system and the MAC website are meant to make the aged care system transparent. They need to reflect what is actually going on in aged care homes. They need to be accurate, current, and reflect ongoing compliance issues. Not be hidden away from the public gaze due to loopholes.
If you’re confused about what an Enforceable Undertaking is, let us explain.
It is a legally binding agreement between an aged care provider and the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission (ACQSC). It’s typically put in place when a provider has failed to meet certain standards but hasn’t faced formal penalties or sanctions. Instead, the provider agrees to make improvements within a set timeframe to avoid further action. An Enforceable Undertaking is only entered into where there have been continuous issues with compliance.
Enforceable Undertakings are not required to be published on the MAC website. But they ARE publicly available documents and can be found on the ACQSC webpage. We have made available on our Advocacy Tasmania web page this post and the Glenview Community Services Enforceable Undertaking.
Aged Care providers need to be fully accountable for their failings.
According to one of our clients, ‘Enforceable Undertakings are a joke – there needs to be criminal penalties for CEO’s and Board Chairs otherwise nothing will change for our loved ones. And we must live the rest of our lives with the guilt of having moved them into that home’.
Clearly, you must dig deep to get the information you need to make an informed decision. Our clients’ despair is real – they thought they had made the right decision only to have disaster befall them and their loved ones.
Advocacy Tasmania can help.
Our service is free, independent, and confidential, please get in touch if you need us:
Advocacy Tasmania
1800 005 131 (free call)
0457 806 963 (text)
contact@yoursaytas.org
[Image Description: The image features white bold text on a black brush-stroke shape, set against a teal background. The text reads: ‘Beware My Aged Care Star Ratings’)