Analysis of Delta outbreaks needed in aged care
Leading Age Services Australia (LASA) is calling on the Federal Government to conduct on an independent analysis of Delta COVID-19 outbreaks in aged care to inform the sector on keeping residents and staff safe as we begin living with COVID.
LASA chief executive Sean Rooney welcomed the release by the government of the Independent Review COVID-19 outbreaks in Australian Residential Aged Care Facilities by Professor Lyn Gilbert AO and Adjunct Professor Alan Lilly.
“We believe it’s a national priority to do all that we can to protect older Australians in aged care homes and the dedicated staff who care for them,” Mr Rooney says.
“The review by independent experts assists us in doing this as we continue to learn and adapt to COVID as it continues to impact aged care and the wider community.
“It provides meaningful insights that assist in our continuous review of practices in aged care to keep people safe. Having timely access to these insights enables the sector to respond appropriately.
"We need to ensure that best practices and procedures are based on the latest expert analysis which is why the government must conduct an independent analysis of Delta outbreaks so that we can be prepared,” Mr Rooney says.
If the sector is to maintain its vigilance and keep people safe, LASA said it would need:
- The government to conduct an independent analysis of Delta outbreaks and share this information with service providers in a timely fashion to ensure lessons learned are applied in practice.
- To ensure aged care staff are adequately resourced and enabled to keep people safe – with this in mind we call on government to ensure the additional operational costs of living with COVID in aged care are calculated and provided to aged care services.
- To ensure nationally consistent and locally relevant protocols between aged care, general practice and acute care agencies and services – we note recent progress the sector is having by working with state and federal governments to realise this outcome.
Are you worried about the welfare of aged care residents as we start living with COVID?
The privatised Aged Care sector is a National disgrace. These facilities are run to make a profit and just throwing money at them will not cure the issues that are present. It will probably lift the profitability tho'.
The Federal Government make plenty of statements about fixing the problems but then do nothing. This seems to be their classic response to anything that is needing their attention.