Knowledge Centre

Category: Things to watch

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Latest industry developments Things to watch

Interesting bit of information – Ingenia testing ‘flat pack’ homes made in China

We will report on this in more detail over the next few months but thought this might tickle your fancy – it sparked our imagination.

Land lease community and rental village operator Ingenia, with over 50 locations, is trialling the manufacture of complete homes in China and shipping them here to Australia.

We hear they have already built one and have ordered and a further nine.

Why are they doing this? Their CEO Simon Owen comes from the retirement village sector and he tells us its origins were affordable housing for Australia’s ageing population. He wants to continue that service.

The potential cost of a two-bedroom home – less than $200,000.

This is not new. Check out these hotels

For hotel rooms we have been told that the room arrives complete with the linen on the bed and the towels in the bathroom!

Your next village may be made in China!

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Key things to help you everyday Things to watch

What is an ombudsman and is it a good idea?

Confusion reigns!

The resident associations want one.

The advocacy groups want one.

The Retirement Living Council in their * Point Plan support having one.

But nobody is prepared to commit to one.

What is an ombudsman and why the road bumps in establishing one?

An Ombudsman is an independent officer of Parliament. They would provide free, independent and binding dispute resolution services to resolve disputes between retirement housing residents and operators – hopefully quickly, fairly and without the costs associated with going to court.

In each state the bureaucrats within the Departments of Consumer Protection/Affairs seem to have a reluctance to have an ombudsman. The ombudsman will have discretion which is perhaps a challenge within the legal circles of these government departments.

The challenge for some operators is there will likely be a cost imposed on all operators – if we never have disputes why should we pay?

It’s also another level of regulation; many don’t want that.

And fear of the unknown – will the ombudsman display favouritism to residents for instance.

In Victoria the Liberal opposition says if they get voted in they will appoint an ombudsman.

The NSW government has decided it will go halfway and appoint an ‘Ambassador’. We wait to find out what that means.

But operators generally seem happy to have one. Here is the exact wording of Point Seven of the Retirement Living Council’s 8 Point Plan.

7. Commit to the establishment of an efficient and cost-effective government-backed independent dispute resolution process, such as an Ombudsman or Advocate, for disputes that are unable to be solved at a village level.

Read the full 8 Point Plan HERE.

What do you think – is an ombudsman a good idea?

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Things to watch

Next Monday night Four Corners will broadcast an aged care version of their retirement village investigation

The ABC has been preparing this two-part series for several months. It goes to air this Monday night, the 17th at 8:30pm and the following Monday night, the 24th.

The word is it will be quite brutal. Expenditure on food at just six dollars a day and lack of nursing staff (mandated staff ratios to residents) will be covered.

Recently the nurses’ unions have been attacking the private operators of aged care and their profits; this is likely to be mentioned in the program.

While not directly targeting retirement villages, it will again unsettle the public on the safeguards in place, especially for private village operators.

You may wish to think about being on the front foot and communicating with residents that the program is coming so they understand it is aged care and they are not hearing about it third hand after the event, with the natural confusion that takes on.

You may also want to think of your responses to the confusion that can occur.

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Things to watch

Baby boomers – will they create new options in retirement living, challenging retirement villages?

The first wave of Baby boomers is upon us and most village managers are reporting that they are ‘different’.

Baby boomers are far more opinionated, direct and expecting upgraded village homes and services.

If they can’t find what they want in retirement villages, where will they go?

For some time, we have been showcasing the Beacon Hill model out of Boston (USA). A neighbourhood of apartment-dwelling retirees have formed a cooperative with a membership system priced at US$750 a year.

For this, they have one employee who coordinates communication and activities.

The first community, in Beacon Hill, has recently had its 10th anniversary. We encourage you to check out an edited video of three minutes to give you an idea of the competition we may have if we do not respond to the new Baby boomer customer.

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Things to watch

Ethical responsibility with potential new residents and ‘independence’

You may be aware that the Property Council has sent every village resident committee across the country their draft Code of Conduct and asked them to make comments.

This week a resident committee for a Queensland village sent us their response. It makes a number of very good points. Here is one suggestion for a change they would like inserted relating to ‘moving into the community’.

“We acknowledge that we have a Duty of Care and an Ethical responsibility to ensure people

contemplating moving into an Independent Retirement Village have the capacity to live

independently and can provide evidence of this”.

Under the Retirement Village Act in every state all residents are required to be able to live ‘independently’, meaning residents can look after themselves in their own home.

But village operators now market that ‘care’ can be delivered into the village, supporting people far later into their frailty.

Is this not a conflict? And if you are a resident would you not want to be supported in your village home, hopefully, up to your passing?

As a village manager, has your operator provided you with clear guidance, training and a policy in relation to this conflict?

Shouldn’t the operator’s policy on support for late ageing be clearly communicated to new and existing residents so as a village manager you don’t have to explain and make judgements?

Your thoughts?