The Illawarra nurse said her mother was left in her own feces and suffered from painful bedsores during her time at a residential aged care facility in 2015.

"She had workers that literally left her in soiled pads over a whole day with only one pad change," Wendy said.

"The amount of bedsores she had, the itching and the pain she was in was horrendous. And the staff for whatever reason didn't do what they were meant to do.

"Maybe if there was a registered nurse around and they could have seen the state Mum was in, they could have used their education to actually make some decisions."

Read more: Aged care nurses demand industry overhaul to fix ongoing staffing crisis

The experience initially turned Wendy off entering the sector, but when the Aged Care Quality Standards came into effect in 2019, it offered her a "glimmer of hope" that she could make a difference.

The eight standards provide a framework for quality and safety in aged care, and all government subsidised facilities are required to meet them.

"Seeing what my mum went through in the nursing home and seeing workers that don't treat people like humans, but seeing that others were doing amazing jobs made me think, 'I want to be a part of something better'," Wendy said.

Read more: Emergency patients, wait times increase at Shoalhaven hospital

But during her time as a nurse, not much has changed.

Wendy said ongoing staffs shortages have left nurses working up to 12 days straight and doing double shifts with no breaks.

"More often than not, you don't get a break. You just keep working through because you know that person will not get a hot meal if you don't," she said.

"When the Aged Care Quality Standards came in ... everything was meant to be around person-centered care," she said.

"We can't give person-centered care, because we don't have the staffing, or the equipment, or the training. It's daunting to know that even after three years, we're still treating people in the same kind of mindset.

"Our residents deserve better."

Illawarra aged care nurse Sue Walton said in her 20 years in the industry, staff and resource shortages have always been an issue, but were made worse by the pandemic.

She said in some facilities the situation was "impossible" with one registered nurse sometimes looking after up to 120 residents during the day.

On night shifts, Sue looks after 40 residents.

"You don't get a chance to put eyes on 40 people to make sure that they are safe," she said.

Read more: $400,000 commitment for Shoalhaven playgrounds, pump tracks

A crowd of aged care and public sector nurses rallied at Shoalhaven hospital on Wednesday to demand a complete overhaul of the sector, including improved staff to patient ratios and higher pay.

Wendy took to the crowd and said the upcoming federal election affords another glimmer of hope - but she isn't placing all her bets on it.

"I'm scared, I don't actually know whether Labor will deliver. But I know that Liberal won't so I have no choice," she said.

"I have to put my hope in Labor's hands."

The protestors welcomed Labor's commitment of ensuring at least one registered nurse is on site at all times in residential aged care facilities by 2023.

If elected, Labor would also go to the Fair Work Commission to seek an immediate wage increase for aged care workers.

During Prime Minister Scott Morrison's recent visit to the South Coast, he hailed the government's investment into aged care in the recent budget.

The 2022/23 federal budget revealed $468.3 million would be spent on the government's response to the royal commission.

The majority of the funds will be spent on improving medication management in aged care facilities and training new and existing workers.

But New South Wales Nurses and Midwives Association members said this investment leaves out provisions for staff to patient ratios and wage increases.

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