Rick Wilson (O'Connor, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to thank the minister responsible for aged care and disability, Senator Mitch Fifield, for giving generously of his time in O'Connor last Tuesday. Together with Senator Dean Smith, we managed to cover significant ground in my huge electorate, consulting with stakeholders in Albany, Esperance and Narrogin. In Albany I hosted a working breakfast for aged-care and disability service providers, where there was considerable conversation on the National Disability Insurance Scheme and the transition towards consumer directed care in the aged-care sector.

At the Esperance aged-care service, director of nursing Kathie Carey recounted stories of long waiting lists for beds, necessitating relocation of potential residents to Perth, fracturing lifelong partnerships and families. In one instance, a violent dementia patient was unable to be safely relocated in Perth when capacity was exceeded. The Esperance care facility will apply for 30 bed licences in this ACAR round and capital funding of $3.2 million to rectify these problems.

In Narrogin, through the hard work of manager Julie Christensen and her board, Karinya Aged Care have already secured land and funding to build their dementia facility. They will be looking for an ACAR allocation of six more beds to meet their commitment to build a 12-bed secure dementia unit, as well as providing bariatric and palliative care capabilities. Julie gave an articulate and passionate synopsis of the situation in Narrogin, where Karinya provides services not only for the needs of the ageing population of the town and its rural hinterlands but also for those migrating from the city seeking cheaper aged-care options.

Again, I thank Mitch and Dean and those who provide services and care to the elderly and challenged citizens of O'Connor.