PSO targets HNZ over ‘underfunding’ of elderly care

Presbyterian Support Otago’s property portfolio in Wānaka remains for sale, the charity’s chief financial officer Andrew Borthwick confirmed.

PSO announced in April that it was selling its properties, Elmslie House and the Wānaka Retirement Village, citing increased operating costs, a lack of funding and concerns about unequal pay for nurses.

The company also announced it would terminate its aged care contract with Aspiring Lifestyle Village on Cardrona Valley Rd.

“To date, the properties in Wanaka are still for sale.

“There is some interest, but no formal bids have been received yet,” Mr Borthwick said.

Aged Care Association (ACA) chief executive Tracey Martin said this week that PSO’s Wānaka issues are similar to issues across the country.

“We continue to be frustrated by Health NZ’s attitude towards the reality of the challenges facing older New Zealanders, their families and those who provide care.

“Wānaka is just one of those New Zealand communities that needs a real commitment from government to work with them to shape the future of aged care provision,” she said.

The ACA’s concerns included HNZ’s refusal to increase the daily rate for aged care to a cost-covering amount, the difficulty of finding housing for workers and the vulnerability to staff shortages, she said.

Health Minister Dr Shane Reti recently told the Wānaka Sun his concerns about the aged care sector had eased after learning that many internationally qualified nurses had come to New Zealand.

Dr. Reti said that “a large number of them go to a nursing home for the elderly.”

“If you had asked me a year or 18 months ago, I would have said that one of my biggest concerns about senior care is the workforce.

“I still have concerns, but it’s much less than it was. I think the elderly care sector could benefit from things getting better,” said Dr. Reti.

Mr Borthwick said “the increased number of international nurses coming into New Zealand is a positive step, but the cost of living is high in the Wānaka area and the overall underfunding of the aged care sector continues to place a significant burden on

Presbyterian Support Otago as we struggle to find the necessary funding
resources to finance our nursing homes”.

Ms Martin said she did not agree with Dr Reti that the nursing challenges had been resolved.

The average vacancy rate in the aged care sector had fallen by 25% to around 10%, but the sector was still very vulnerable to staff shortages. Daily pay at HNZ was poor, nurses were not paid the same as nurses in HNZ hospitals and migrant nurses were “often not suited to the aged care workplace”, she said.

Health NZ was in conflict because it employed a group of nurses while simultaneously funding a sector that also needed these workers.

While many migrant nurses came from heavily controlled environments and did not have the confidence and independence of New Zealand-trained nurses when it came to making decisions about medication, Ms Martin said.

She also said the ACA had seen “a continued increase in the number of people with and without a pension when it comes to accessing aged care”. 40% of New Zealand’s seniors live on a pension and another 20% live on a pension “and a little bit more”.

“It is appropriate to provide different levels of housing for different New Zealanders.

“What is not appropriate is that the government and its agent (Health NZ) continue to ignore the underfunding of more affordable services such as Presbyterian Support Otago, thereby minimising the care options for around 60% of older New Zealanders,” Ms Martin said.

PSO first revealed in June last year that it was struggling to recruit and retain staff in Wānaka during the cost of living crisis. It asked Wānaka residents to consider renting homes to PSO staff.

PSO currently employs 116 staff in Wānaka.