Tuesday, 2 August 2022

 Ms SHEED (Shepparton) (19:15): (6462) Deputy Speaker, congratulations on your election today.

My adjournment is for the Minister for Disability, Ageing and Carers, and the action I seek is that he visits Numurkah Pioneers Memorial Lodge to see the work that needs to be done at the facility. Numurkah Pioneers Memorial Lodge was built in 1976 and used as a hostel. Over time it transitioned to a residential, high needs aged care home catering for 32 residents, two respite residents and two people in transition care beds. It is a state-run, public sector residential aged care facility.

The building was never designed as a residential aged care home and needs significant capital works to improve the design, functionality and facilities and the safety and comfort of the residents and the staff. The residents’ rooms and bathrooms are too small to accommodate aid equipment such as wheelchairs, walkers and lifting aids. Its corridors are narrow, making it difficult to move equipment and help frail residents, increasing the risk of trips, falls and other accidents. The building does not create a suitable environment for our elderly residents, who deserve to live in comfort in their latter years. There is no dedicated medical consulting room for private appointments with doctors or allied health professionals and no communal area for leisure activities.

The redevelopment of Numurkah Pioneers Memorial Lodge was estimated to cost over $17 million in 2020. Numurkah community health estimates this will have risen to more than $20 million due to the increased cost of building supplies and Labor-designed guidelines for aged care facilities. As the years move on, the redevelopment gets more expensive and more urgent, with more financial support required. Without funding from the Victorian government a new pioneers lodge cannot be built, leaving our much-loved older residents living in outdated, unsuitable buildings that do not match their care needs. A modern, fit-for-purpose building for Numurkah would not only provide some level of luxury, it is a basic right for them. Residents deserve a contemporary aged care home which enhances their quality of life.

So many of our aged care facilities have been challenged during the pandemic, but Numurkah Pioneers Memorial Lodge has been able to care for its residents in an exemplary manner. Its staff are all paid under the Victorian public sector awards. There have been no deaths due to COVID, and the cases have been able to be managed because they have sufficient staff who are dedicated to the care of their residents. I know the staff and residents of the facility would welcome the minister’s visit, which may help the department to decide which areas should be prioritised for health funding during the coming 12 months.