Uniting Aged Care to run Bridgewater

The Minister for Ageing, Justine Elliot, has announced that the Commonwealth has entered into an agreement with Uniting Aged Care to temporarily take over the running of Bridgewater Aged Care Home in Melbourne.

This follows the financial collapse of the privately owned nursing home and the appointment of administrators on 23 May 2008.

The administrators, Stephen Longley, David McEvoy and Tim Cuming from PricewaterhouseCoopers, will continue to investigate the financial affairs of the former approved provider of the home (Vitality Care) and seek a sale.

Uniting Aged Care, one of Australia’s largest not-for-profit organisations ,will be responsible for ensuring that residents of Bridgewater continue to receive care, and also that  employees’ salary, wages and other employee entitlements will continue to be met.

Uniting Aged Care has extensive experience in the delivery of aged care in Victoria. They currently operate a number of residential aged care services and care for several hundred residents across the state.

Officers from the Department of Health and Ageing and the administrators will continue to work closely with Uniting Aged Care and keep staff, their representatives and unions, and residents and their families informed of developments.

Since Vitality Care went into administration, the Government has overseen:

•  the appointment and funding of a clinical nurse adviser team to assist the administrators to maintain quality of care;
• reimbursement of the administrators for paying staff salaries and wages owed prior to 23 May 2008;
• funding for the administrators to cover liabilities directly incurred in connection with the continued operation of Bridgewater, professional fees directly associated with the administrators’ responsibilities in operating Bridgewater, and expenses directly associated with the investigation of th accommodation bond balances; and
• the appointment of case managers for each resident and their family to provide information and assistance.

The Department of Health and Ageing and the Aged Care Standards and Accreditation Agency are working closely with the home to ensure that the care and wellbeing of residents are maintained.