CAN AGED CARE KEEP UP?
CHIEF EXECUTIVE LOU PASCUZZI SPEAKS ABOUT HOW TLC AGED CARE HAS SEEN THE WRITING ON THE WALL AND CREATED A HAVEN FOR BABY BOOMERS
AS the baby boomer generation moves into residential aged care, they will have expectations that look very different to those of their parents.
The aged care industry has been slow to come to this realisation, and it is now playing catch-up to the expectations of this generation about the quality of their homes and the services they provide.
Refundable accommodation deposits are like an interest-free loan paid to the aged care provider.
The aged care provider then invests this amount to pay for improvements to their facilities and services, build new facilities and earn interest.
Over many years the aged care industry has misused RADs by overpaying for going concerns to expand their networks and allocating funds to the wrong areas within their existing infrastructure.
Now the baby boomer generation has arrived, with expectations that aged care homes will provide a level of comfort and amenity similar to a resort-style hotel. Aged care providers who did not historically invest their RADs to support this are not in a position to meet this generation’s expectations.
In 2014, TLC Healthcare announced its $120 million investment strategy that changed the face of aged care in Australia. Over the ensuing years, TLC has renovated all of its 11 locations to give them a light, bright and modern feel, which supported its integrated care model.
In 2018, TLC opened a magnificent new home, Warralily Gardens at Armstrong Creek, and started a major redevelopment to combine our two homes in
Wallington into one location, Homestead Estate.
The most important component of that investment strategy was to incorporate medical centres into each of our homes.
This means that our residents have access to general practitioners, a selection of specialists, chronic disease management nurses and allied health professionals on-site during working hours.
Other key components of our strategy included free cafés, virtual reality cinemas with interactive wall technology, state-of-the-art gymnasiums and hydrotherapy pools, and beauty salons. These are the kind of services you would expect at a resort style hotel, and TLC can offer them today.
Many people in the aged care industry ask me why TLC is so successful, and the answer is simple. We provide the kind of accommodation and services that our customers expect. We have done this by reinvesting in our homes, not banking our profits.