Original concept designer for Rose Mumbler Village Darren McLeod has welcomed the findings of a recent report which found the nursing home met only 11 of the 44 expected outcomes of the Accreditation Standards.
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He has called for the village to be shut down immediately.
Mr McLeod is a son of Rose Mumbler Village founder Isabelle May McLeod, whose dream it was to build a retirement village, so the elderly could live out their years with dignity by professional carers.
“My family welcomes, applauds and appreciates what has now happened,” he said.
“Our late mother’s humanity was above reproach, this is why she received the British Empire Medal and the Silver Jubilee Medal for her unwavering community work. Where is the respect?”
Mr McLeod blamed the Aboriginal Corporations Registrar Act and the Department of Aboriginal Affairs for the nursing home’s failings.
“The failures that are now transparent was always a problem waiting to happen and part of this problem rests with the governing boards of the Rose Mumbler Retirement Village,” Mr McLeod said.
“This Act is well past its use by date and needs to be rescinded and replaced immediately with a more thorough process that redresses such internal failures specifically in the areas of aged care, health care and mental health.
“The Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet and the Department of Aboriginal Affairs has to now start taking some responsibility in addressing and cleaning up this mess by first dismantling the Aboriginal Corporation Registrar Act and replace it with a more defining structure under ASIC.”
Mr McLeod said the six-month period which the corporation had been granted to bring the facility up to scratch was not satisfactory.
“My advice as an elder with the full support of my family is to immediately close the retirement village,” he said.
“The village has to be rebuilt from the ground up with the right professional people appointed over all sectors of the organisation and governed under a newly structured mainstream aged care accredited system for the facility to be fully functional.”
The Illaroo Cooperative Aboriginal Corporation, which manages Rose Mumbler Village, has released a statement outlining their intentions for the nursing home.
“The Illaroo Cooperative Aboriginal Corporation, North Nowra, has welcomed the over sight and support of a nurse administrator and adviser to restore the required standards at the Rose Mumbler Village,” a spokesperson said.
“We acknowledge the facility’s 17 residents deserve the highest standards and the best care and support in their home at Rose Mumbler Village.
“We have let them down but we are working around the clock to redress the issues identified by the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency.”
The statement claimed a number of the issues identified in the report had already been rectified.
“The residents’ health, safety and wellbeing is assured by the initiatives undertaken and processes in place,” a spokesperson said.
“It is important for our residents, their families and our staff that we again receive full accreditation so we can deliver on our commitment to provide a safe and happy home environment.
“This has been a difficult and distressing time for everyone involved. We are determined to regain the trust and confidence that may have been called into question and we are doing everything we need to do and more.”
An administrator has been contracted to remain at the facility until June 2017 and the nursing home will be monitored by the Department of Health and the Quality Agency in addition to unannounced inspections.
