Frequently Asked Questions

The fees and charges for residential aged care services and accommodation potentially include:

• A basic daily fee
• An accommodation payment or accommodation contribution
• A means tested care fee.

For further information, please refer to the Financial Information page

The accommodation payment or room price varies from home to home. The basic daily fee and means tested care fee will be determined by the Department of Health following their assessment of your completion and submission of the Permanent Residential Aged Care – Request for a Combined Assets and Income Assessment form (SA457).

In response to recommendations of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, in December 2022, the Australian Government introduced a 5-Star Rating system for all residential aged care homes in Australia.

All government-funded aged care homes in Australia now have a Star Rating to make it easier to compare the quality of aged care homes and make choices about care.

The Star Ratings are a simple way to rate the quality of care at an aged care home in comparison to others. All aged care homes across Australia receive a rating between 1 and 5 stars to indicate their quality of care across 4 key areas of performance. Outcomes in four subcategories inform an overall Star Rating.

You can find more information about Star Ratings here: Calculating the Star Ratings | My Aged Care

Star ratings indicate the performance of every aged care home, benchmarked with others, using nationally consistent quality measures.

Each home has an overall star rating between 1 and 5 stars. The more stars means the home is delivering higher quality care across four key areas of performance:

Quality Indicators (15%): Quantifies how an aged care service performs on a relative basis against five different quality indicators. The Quality Measures Rating compares a number of health issues that are important indicators of whether a home is providing high quality care, reviewing incidents at the home over the previous quarter in comparison with the national average. This rating is updated every three months.

Service Compliance (30%): Rates performance assessed by the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission against the clinical and quality standards that apply to all providers. The rating is updated whenever compliance actions are issued or resolved.

Resident Experience (33%): Indicates scores based on interviews with at least 10% of those living in a residential aged care home, rating their overall experience. The interviews are conducted by an independent assessor in the annual Resident Experience Surveys (formerly known as Consumer Experience Interviews). The rating is updated annually, in line with the survey cycle.

Staffing Minutes (22%): Indicates clinical staffing levels against set targets from the Department of Health and Aged Care. The Staffing Rating is based on an aged care home’s reporting on the total amount of nursing and personal care time from a registered nurse, enrolled nurse and personal care worker, and the care time from a registered nurse only. Providers need to report the amount of care delivered in relation to these two measures every three months. Meeting or exceeding these targets means a provider will have a better Star Rating for Staffing.

Resthaven works to continuously improve the quality of care and services offered. We work together with the government and regulators to implement improvements to ensure high quality, safe and affordable aged care.

Individual room prices reflect a number of key features, including: room size, aspect, outlook, and location.

To view the latest room price or to compare rooms visit the Financial Information page or visit the relevant Resthaven location on www.myagedcare.gov.au

Resthaven will help you to apply in any way we can.

Enquiries can be directed to the Resthaven Residential Accommodation Enquiries Team:

Phone: (08) 8373 9113

Email: accommodation@resthaven.asn.au 

Click here to find out how to apply

There is no set waiting period.

Being offered accommodation at Resthaven depends on:

• Your current care needs and requirement for residential care
• The type of accommodation required to meet your care needs.

There is no penalty or disadvantage resulting from declining a room. Your application remains under consideration for all vacancies.

All homes have regular tours on at least a monthly basis.

Visits at other times may also be arranged on request if required. This is an opportunity to view the home and discuss any questions you may have.

Click here to check the tour dates

In most circumstances, a decision about acceptance of the room on offer is needed by the following business day.

Our Residential Accommodation Enquiries team work with you to ensure you have the required information to consider the accommodation, including relevant fees and charges.

Having accepted a room, it is preferable to move in as soon as possible.

Your family and friends may assist with the move and our staff will assist you to settle into your new home.

The majority of rooms at Resthaven are single rooms with an ensuite bathroom.

However, we also have some rooms suitable for couples to share. These rooms also have an ensuite bathroom.

At Resthaven, we encourage you to personalise your living space with personal items from home.

We will provide a suitable bed and bedside table. The items you wish to bring in to personalise your living space is dependent on the size of the room and suitability of the items.

Electrical items such as a toaster, microwave or iron are not permitted due to fire risk. All other approved electrical items must be checked for electrical safety prior to use in your room and this will be undertaken by our maintenance staff when you move in.

Pets are most welcome to visit you through the day, provided they are suitably restrained (such as on a leash or in a carry basket) for the safety of all people.

Unfortunately, we are unable to accommodate pets on a permanent basis. Some of our homes have a shared pet.

Yes, in some situations.

Motorised chairs, including gophers, scooters and electric wheelchairs, may only be used by people who are assessed as being safe to do so. Our allied health staff, along with the nursing staff and Medical Practitioner, will assess a person’s ability on an individual basis, with reference to the safety of all persons within the home environment.

In general, moving rooms is only considered if there is a genuine reason for the move, such as changing care needs.

If the situation arises where you may be better accommodated in a different room, we will discuss this with you at the time.

• Resthaven has qualified nurses and personal carers on duty 24 hours per day. Staffing levels are determined on the basis of resident need and within our funding limitation, not according to predefined staff to resident ratios. There may be times where temporary additional staff are rostered for short-term periods as required, for example, palliative care and health deterioration.
• All Resthaven homes are supported by additional onsite staff in areas such as catering and cleaning, maintenance and gardening, clinical management and administrative support.
• Resthaven employs senior nurse specialists with expertise Palliative Care, Advanced Practice Nurse Mental Health and Dementia and Continence Nurse Advisors, who are available to all homes to provide assistance and advice.

When you move into a residential aged care home (nursing home) at Resthaven, we are committed to making you feel welcome. Visitors are welcome and encouraged at all reasonable times. In exceptional circumstances, such as a public health concern, visiting may be restricted, impacting on visiting times and opportunities. Please check with reception.

Our staff are qualified, insured, and police checked, providing dedicated and affordable support. Staff are offered ongoing training, and all Residential Services Managers are Registered Nurses. This brings peace of mind. However, if you have any questions or concerns, please ask the staff. We want you to feel welcome and at home as soon as possible.

“Resthaven is the best place in the world”

Yes, Resthaven offers an exceptional standard of palliative and end of life care at each of our homes. Staff onsite are also supported by a Nurse specialising in Palliative Care.

We will work together with you, your family and/or your support persons, and your Medical Practitioner, to provide individualised end of life care, at all times being respectful of your wishes and beliefs.

Find out about Resthaven’s approach to Palliative Care

We encourage all residents to complete an advanced care directive. This will indicate your choice and preferences with regard to your care as you enter the last stages of life.

While there are no specific visiting hours, in exceptional circumstances, such as a public health concern, visiting may be restricted, impacting on visiting times and opportunities. Please check with reception.

Resthaven prides itself on the excellent quality and variety of our freshly cooked meals.

Menus are developed in consultation with residents and are designed to provide variety and choice. We also have our menus reviewed by a dietitian to ensure nutritional balance.

Yes, all clothing laundered by Resthaven must have permanent labels in place.

For your convenience, name labels are available for purchase from Reception and our staff will apply them for you.

Basic linen is supplied for you such as sheets, blankets, pillow cases, towels, etc., and this is laundered by an external contractor for Resthaven.

You are welcome to use your own personal bed linen, but the laundering of this will be your responsibility.

Resthaven provides a comprehensive laundry service for your convenience. We will take care of the laundering of your clothes if you wish.

Our commercial washing machines and tumble dryers work at quite high temperatures, so clothing does need to be suitable for this type of launder.

Clothing such as woollens and delicate items may not be suitable for our laundry service so we suggest you make alternative arrangements for those items.

Resthaven respects the individual rights of residents and visitors to smoke, but smoking is only permitted in specific external designated areas.

No smoking is permitted within Resthaven buildings, vehicles and enclosures or within the proximity of external doorways, windows and ventilation areas. Residents who wish to smoke will need to undertake a risk assessment by the nursing and allied health staff, to ensure you are safe to do so.

Medication administration is the responsibility of qualified nurses and specially trained care staff at all Resthaven homes.

Our staff will work with you to ensure safe and timely administration of your prescribed medications.

Resthaven has a preferred pharmacy provider. Medicines ordered by your doctor are delivered to the home by the pharmacy. Residents choosing to use this provider for supply of their medicines have direct access to a limited after-hours emergency supply held on site.

AMR occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites change over time and no longer respond to medicines, making common infections harder to treat and increasing the risk of disease spread, severe illness and death. Misuse and overuse of antimicrobials in humans, animals and plants are the main drivers in the development of drug-resistant infections.

Poor medical prescribing practices and patient adherence to treatment also contribute. For example, antibiotics kill bacteria, but they cannot kill viral infections like colds and flu. Often they are incorrectly prescribed for those illnesses, or taken without proper medical oversight. Always take antimicrobial medicines with proper medical oversight – including antibiotics, antiviral, antifungals and antiparasitic.

Resthaven supports and promotes responsible use of antimicrobials at all times encouraging residents to discuss and clarify appropriate use of antimicrobials which include antibiotics, antivirus and antifungals with their health practitioner.

If you have a complaint, in the first instance, we encourage you to raise any personal concerns with nursing staff or with the manager, who is available and committed to dealing with any concerns or complaints you may have.

Resthaven has a complaints resolution procedure that is outlined in our feedback brochure, ‘We’d like to hear from you’, which is available at various locations throughout Resthaven aged care homes and via the link below.

Use these brochures for providing written feedback or comments, or visit our Feedback page and complete the form. Your feedback will be responded to.

Visit our Feedback page   View the ‘We welcome your feedback’ brochure

Resthaven Charter of Aged Care Rights

At Resthaven, we are committed to supporting and protecting the rights of our residents and clients, while recognising their responsibilities as well.

This commitment is part of our ongoing aim to deliver high-quality services, meeting the needs of the people we support.

Resthaven supports your rights through the Australian Government’s Charter of Aged Care Rights.

Learn about your rights as detailed in the Resthaven Charter of Aged Care Rights.

View the Charter of Aged Care Rights

Resthaven encourages feedback and welcomes your suggestions for improvement.

You are welcome to visit our feedback page or send us your comments via email.

The Australian Government Department of Health has developed A Charter of Aged Care Rights booklet to support understanding of the new Charter of Aged Care Rights.

This booklet is available in English, and 18 other languages.

Download the Charter of Aged Care Rights Booklet in other languages