As the welfare of our residents at North Eastern Community Nursing Home (NECNH) has been, is and always will be our number one priority, I am delighted to tell you all that I have just this week been advised that the NECNH is again fully compliant with Aged Care standards.
You may recall that our June 2018 accreditation audit by the aged care industry regulators, the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency, found that the nursing home did not meet expected outcomes in six of the 44 areas audited.
We took the findings extremely seriously and immediately implemented a number of significant steps to address the results and work cooperatively with the Commonwealth Department of Health and the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency to achieve the required improvements.
That we have now been deemed fully compliant less than two months later is testament to our deep commitment to aged care excellence in a safe, caring and compassionate environment.
We are not about to rest on our laurels though and are already hard at work on an ambitious plan to offer a restraint-free environment across the nursing home.
While still early days, we have already reduced the use of restraints by 90 %, which positions us as one of the lowest users of restraints in South Australia.
Our next challenge is to achieve 100 % restraint-free status over the coming 12 months and be recognised as a pioneer in this area and a standout leader in the aged care sector anywhere in Australia.
In pursuit of this goal, we have now re-evaluated the needs of all residents and implemented an innovative behavioural training program for our staff. We have further invested in a range of equipment designed to minimise the risk of falls, along with ground-breaking technology that alerts staff when at-risk dementia patients are up, about and on the move.
I have also appointed a senior staff member who, while answering directly to me as the CEO, will oversee the implementation of the new policy and the delivery of the target.
The proud history of NECNH abounds with examples of going beyond merely meeting the expectations of families, friends and regulators.
We’re about leading the way, through employing the very best people and offering professional development training to match, through investing in the most advanced equipment and through policies and practices that ensure we use restraints less often than any other aged care provider.
Our families rightly want to be confident that their loved ones receive the very best care. And we’re committed to providing them with that assurance by actively living out our conviction that the welfare of our residents is forever paramount.
It’s my promise to provide you all with regular updates and progress reports as we journey towards meeting these vitally important targets.
