Aspen Medical provided St Basil’s Home for the Aged in Fawkner with workers who were “literally graduates”, with the majority having no experience in aged care.
The contractor was awarded millions to provide surge staff after the Victorian chief health officer Brett Sutton stood the home’s entire workforce down on July 22 last year. Professor Sutton is due to give evidence at the inquest next Wednesday.
Neil Callagher, then head of the Commonwealth Aged Care COVID-19 Implementation Branch, said finding staff to attend to frail residents wasn’t easy.
Mr. Callagher told Victoria’s Coroners Court he was under the impression Aspen would be providing experienced aged care workers.
The inquest heard many of the workers never showed up or refused to take the job when learning the home was the site of an outbreak, and those who did were reduced to tears during their time at the home, according to The Australian.
The inquest into the deaths of 50 residents at the home in 2020 – Australia’s deadliest aged care COVID-19 outbreak – continues.
Source: The Australian
