From our CEO – Spring Message
* 1 September 2019 *
Accreditation
As of 1 July, the new Aged Care Quality Standards and the new Charter of Aged Care Rights both became law.
On the same date, accreditation visits, which are now all unannounced and last up to three days, moved across to the new Standards, and Vasey RSL Care Brighton East was the first of our residential homes to undergo the new process on 24-26 July.
There are eight new standards and they affect every aspect of our organisation, so this was a rigorous test of the success of our communications, learning and development processes.
At this stage, the initial report is positive and we are waiting for the final decision.
I would like to once again acknowledge Annette Greenwood, General Manager Quality & Risk, for the guidance she has provided over the last 18 months regarding the new Standards, and the leadership of all the General Managers in supporting staff through the transition. This work is ongoing as we all continue to aim for ‘Excellence in Care’, where every action is putting the individual at the centre of decision-making, ie Person-Centred Care.
Consumer Advisory Committee
Earlier this year we called for expressions of interest in joining our new Consumer Advisory Committee, a committee made up of members of our community and/or their representatives, which will provide valuable insight and input into the organisation.
We had a significant number of responses from all areas including family members, residents, home care consumers and tenants of our units. A selection process is currently underway and we aim to have the first meeting of the committee in October, after which the committee will meet quarterly.
Our 15th Birthday
In July, we marked 15 years since Vasey RSL Care came into being, when Vasey Housing Victoria and RSL Care Victoria merged in 2004. More than 10% of our staff have been with us all that time! It is important, especially for those we care for, that there is continuity of care: therefore, ensuring we continue to provide the best possible working environment for our staff remains one of our most important goals.
I am proud of the work that our staff do and on 7 August, we marked ‘Aged Care Employee Day’, a day to thank, celebrate and honour all those working in our industry in Australia.
Ex-Service Units for All Ages
In May we farewelled Carmel Brownbill, our Unit Manager (one of those loyal staff members who had been with the organisation since just prior to the merger). Carmel is very well known and respected by our unit tenants and she moves on with our grateful thanks and our very best wishes.
Emil Vanderzee has taken over from Carmel, and having been a member of our Home Care Team for the last three years, he is already well known by our home care consumers and is familiar with our organisation. We wish him well as he gets to know our approximately 330 tenants.
We continue to engage with other ex-service organisations (ESOs) to ensure that our units are accessible to veterans/partners/widow(er)s of all ages.
With my best wishes, Janna Voloshin, CEO