Aged Care Food Quality: $6 Food Spending, Peak Body Speak Out

Yesterday, the media and public were in an uproar over the claims that Australian aged care services were only spending $6 to feed a resident three meals.

On 9 Network's Today show, Georgie Gardner spoke with CEO of Leading Age Services Australia (LASA) Sean Rooney, about the recent allegation.

To which he responded; "the thing to understand is on that point is a range of factors that contribute to whole issue of food around residential aged concern"

"The first thing to roll in the hay is that as people senesce, it's understandable that many of them will experience the expiration of appetite and that can contribute to the risk of malnutrition"

"So in that context, residential old care providers are acutely aware of that  and then they are compelled through the quality standards to put in place appropriate meals that provide adequate nutrition and hydration that enables full quality care to be delivered"

"And so when you unpack the costs of $6 a day versus $8 a day etc etc, in that location's some things to actually allow"

"The first thing to note is that the prices we are talk about are sweeping prices, not retail prices – this is not what you pay when you break to a Woolies checkout."

"The ordinal thing is that when preparing food in these facilities, these are commercial scale operations, this is not your family kitchen".

"The other matter to note is that the meals provided, more frequently than not precondition that the calorie requirements of older hoi polloi living in residential senior care is often very much lower than the normal adult, the actual percentage sizes are smaller."

"And finally, it's non righteous food – there are supplements that are provided that are not included in that costing and those supplements are by and large prescribed by a GP to secure that there is adequate nutrition and to deal with conditions such as dysphagia, which is problems swallowing, or hoi polloi with alveolar consonant issues"

"So there are a turn of elements, and to be honest, it's a minute twisted to go and compage what happens in an aged care adeptness to what happens in a prison – totally other in terms of calories requirements and needs."

"[Prisons] are preponderantly male population that is relatively mobile and fit and able-bodied in that organization versus predominantly distaff over the age of 80-85 who don't hold ou particularly active lifestyles"

"We would argue that there are a lot of things to cost looked into rather than just grabbing a '$6 a day'."

When questions if helium would eat the food offered in aged care, Rooney said, "I've eaten food at facilities".

"I've been to many facilities, I've Sat fallen and eaten their food, I've met with their residents and had food with them"

"I'd in-bounds to say the system and process in situ in regards to quality standards – which every last have to be met – in set up to induce a menu plan provided in residential aged care facilities, they need to be provided by a dietician, delivered past cordial reception professionals."

"The nutrition depicted object is measured, [there are] other protocols in base that enable the people that providing the care to supervise the weight of the residents."

"There are a identification number of systems and procedure that are tied to the quality standards that really deliver that appropriate nutrition".

What the Public Have to Say

Georgie then went along to read messages submitted by the public – from aged care workers, to family member to populate who were merely concerned by the fib.

Judith Leigh said "I think it's an absolute disgrace treating the elderly in this manner. Certainly needs investigation at the height charge with inspectors on the job to constantly correspond these facilities".

Older tending worker Judy Stanfield said "I was but retrained into aged care and I'm horrified at the discussion of our elderly. They are physically advisable cared for just they are non "people" rather a set of "funadable tasks" contained within timeframes – it's undignified and inhuman"

Jenny Lee, another aged care worker, added "I work in of age care and I love my job. I guess our residents are fortunate they all get healthy palatable meals everyday. I Doctor of Osteopathy cerebrate aged care necessarily to cost decently regulated to makes sure this kind of thing doesn't happen. The old are vulnerable and we need to make a point they always have the kind of care they deserve."

Last, Dale Carruthers said "my father spent the last five months of his life in an aged care facility and the food for thought and care He received was absolutely fantastic – there were no concerns in anyway. Some facilities are extremely profit driven".

What do you have to say? Point out, share and like below.

https://hellocare.com.au/aged-care-peak-body-speaks-6-food-spending/

Source: https://hellocare.com.au/aged-care-peak-body-speaks-6-food-spending/

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