September 7, 2017
Member for Maranoa David Littleproud has quizzed Blue Care about staffing at its Canowindra aged care centre in Kingaroy.
This follows a meeting between Blue Care officials and employees at Canowindra on Tuesday.
An official statement from the provider said the meeting was “to commence consultation regarding proposed changes to work hours and the facility’s service model”.
Earlier this year, multiple nursing positions were cut at Bundaberg’s Blue Care facilities which prompted concerns from the Queensland Nurses Union about the future administration of medications.
“I understand Blue Care has made changes to its operations at Bundaberg and this week met with staff at Canowindra so I’ve made urgent contact with this aged care provider to determine the future of nursing jobs at Kingaroy,” Mr Littleproud said.
“I believe protecting and caring for our seniors – who built this nation – are a top priority and quality aged care and appropriate staffing levels are fundamental to this.
“That’s why aging-in-place is a core value for the Coalition Government, especially in rural areas. Seniors are valued members of our community and deserve the aged care services and support to stay in our country towns as their needs change.”
At the time of the Bundaberg job cuts, reports linked the changes to “aged care reforms” by the Federal Government.
However, Mr Littleproud said Canowindra received $4.3 million in Federal Government funding in 2015-16, up $400,000 from 2014-15.
He said the Federal Government did not mandate roster hours or staffing levels in aged care facilities; the staffing level and mix was left to the provider but the provider must provide appropriate levels of care to meet the nursing and personal needs of the residents.
Blue Care Group Executive (Regional and Remote Services) Alan Wilson said Australia’s aged care sector was undergoing “unprecedented change”.
“Therefore Blue Care must change, driven by sector reform and the necessity to create flexibility within our facilities to respond to the changing needs of our residents,” he said.
“Doing nothing in response to the changes faced by the aged care sector is not an option for our organisation.
“As a mission-led, not-for-profit organisation, we have a responsibility to act so that we can continue to serve the community long into the future and support some of our most remote and regional communities across Queensland.
“It is necessary that we modify how we deliver our services and transition to a personalised care model that is already widely in place across Australia’s aged care sector and other areas of Blue Care. This model balances the needs of our residents and employees in order to provide sustainable, high-quality care and support.
“In our residential aged care facilities this includes training our personal carers to provide increased support to our registered nurses (RNs), enrolled nurses (ENs) and residents.
“Our personal carers are responsible for the same basic care tasks that family members regularly undertake in their own homes when caring for a loved one.
“Blue Care personal carers do not, and will not, have responsibility for the administration of medication to residents and will continue to practice in accordance with all applicable Federal and State legislation and regulations.
“Importantly, our RNs will continue to have special responsibility for the administration of complex and high-risk medications to residents.
“As a not-for-profit organisation, now more than ever we need a continued focus on finding ways of operating that ensure we can maintain sustainable health and community services. If we don’t, we will not be able to respond to ongoing community need and expectation.”
The discussions at Blue Care follow job cuts at Southern Cross aged care homes – including Karinya in Nanango, and Castra in Murgon – in July.
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