General News
11 September, 2025
MP slams state’s aged care record
MEMBER for South West Coast Roma Britnell has slammed the Victorian Government’s record on aged care in Terang, saying in Parliament the loss of services is tantamount to elder abuse.
Ms Britnell raised her concerns speaking against the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Amendment (Medication Administration in Residential Aged Care) Bill 2025 in Parliament recently.
The bill seeks to create new safeguards as to who can administer medications in aged care settings.
Ms Britnell said she supported the idea on the surface level of improving medication safety, but felt such measures would also stretch thin already overworked nurses and fundamentally misunderstood the dynamics of some rural aged care facilities.
While speaking on the bill, Ms Britnell said Terang was an example of how shortcuts were being presented as solutions to the state’s aged care woes.
“In Terang, a town of 2000 people, there is actually a real deficit of aged care beds, and there is actually no respite available,” she said.
“This is as a result of the May Noonan facility being sold and losing the aged care beds from Terang.
“The nearest option is 25 kilometres away and the government, when I spoke to them about the need in Terang last time, said, ‘Look, it’s all sorted. We’ve been doing a great job. We’ve got beds in Cobden and Camperdown’.
“It is not recognising the realities that the families and the spouses do not do any business in those towns.”
Ms Britnell said the loss of aged care options available locally, both for permanent residence or respite care, was putting increased strain on dependents.
“So often family members are saving the government millions of dollars by caring for their loved ones at home, but they need looking after as well,” she said.
“They deserve support and they deserve access to respite.
“The government can assist this by giving Terang Hospital funding to provide respite beds and help the people in Terang.”
Ms Britnell said her own recent family experience with the lack of local aged care options had highlighted just how dire the situation had become.
“Just last week one of my own family members in Terang had to move into aged care down in Cobden and it is terribly traumatic for the family,” she said.
“The family members that I am talking about have been married for over 50 years but just visiting involves a treacherous journey on a poorly maintained road full of potholes.
“For an elderly person, as in the case of my family member, this seems cruel and actually almost irresponsible – but why shouldn’t they have the right to be in the relationship they have been in and support each other in their older years?
“Last week I spoke to Eve, a community member from Terang, who begged me to tell the government that the effect this is having on her community is very significant.
“She actually rightfully said it is a form of elder abuse to break up these homes and force people into these situations and not understand the country environment.”
Ms Britnell said she supported the overall concepts behind the bill, but questioned what impact could be had on legislation she believed was rushed.
“I have nursed in these facilities, my mum is in an aged care facility and my dad died in an aged care facility last year – so I have been very much at the coalface for some time now,” she said.
“This is another example of this government trying to look like they are addressing issues but with no real solutions that will work in the real world and certainly not in South West Coast.
“Our aged care workers, elderly residents and communities deserve better than a government just doing token-gesture bills like the one we have here.”
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