Consumers want to redefine quality

The chief of National Seniors says older Australians don’t have enough say in aged care.

The head of one of the nation’s largest groups for seniors told the National Press Club that quality of life needs to be the focus of aged care.

Michael O’Neill from National Seniors told the gathering of journalists that three quarters of seniors rate aged care as an extremely important issue – second only to health.

Despite this, he said consumers have little say in determining quality in aged care.

“Any focus on quality of care has been subsumed by the issue of service delivery as defined by those who provide the services and unfortunately by the funding providers and regulators – government,” Mr O’Neill said.

“It is essential that a balance is recovered and that quality of life is the core focus in delivery of care.”

Mr O’Neill said governments and provider organisations often pay lip service to consumer needs without addressing them properly.

“This is unfortunately a characteristic of the health system generally,” he said. “And I acknowledge that consumer bodies like NSA need to do more in this regard.”

The National Seniors chief also expressed concern about the complexity of the aged care system.

“There is already significant stress for family and informal carers at the time support is sought for an older person, so ensuring the experience is managed and delivered in a seamless manner is essential,” he said.

Mr O’Neill finished by calling on the federal parliament to deliver strong reforms for aged care, following the release of the Productivity Commission’s report on the sector next April.

“It is an issue that requires leadership and a bipartisan response that ensures a consistent course for the future that consumers and industry can be confident of,” he said.

Tags: aged-care, michael-oneill, national-seniors, press-club, quality-of-life,

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