This month it was Elder Abuse Awareness Week, and the spotlight was put on how we treat our elderly as a community and what constitutes abuse. BRIEN CREE, managing director of Radius Care, explores the issue.

Home and community support services are under threat because the current funding model for the sector is unsustainable.

The 2014 Report on the Positive Ageing Strategy outlines how older people’s spending is expected to quadruple by 2051, while the workforce will continue to get older.

Shares of Arvida Group Limited today began trading on the NZX Main Board following a successful IPO that raised $80 million in new capital to underpin the growth of the new retirement and aged care group.

A spat between New Zealand Aged Care Association (NZACA) and seniorshousing.co.nz, the organisation behind online publication NZ Aged Care Housing Weekly, has raised questions about an upcoming seminar organised by seniorshousing.co.nz.

It was its food that saw Ranfurly Village Hospital triumph in this year’s New Zealand Aged Care Association /EBOS Excellence in Care Awards. 

New Zealand ranks tenth out of 96 countries in a global index measuring the wellbeing of older people.

A new player has emerged in New Zealand’s retirement village and aged care sectors. Nineteen privately owned retirement villages and aged care facilities are considering a proposal to amalgamate ownership under a corporate entity, Hercules Ltd.

Quality of life is the general wellbeing of individuals, defined in terms of health and happiness rather than wealth. Quality of life can be confused with the concept of ‘standard of living’, which is based primarily on income.

Oceania, one of New Zealand’s largest retirement village and rest home operators, looks set to join Ryman Healthcare, Metlifecare, and Summerset and list on the New Zealand stock exchange.

Ryman Healthcare has bought Tropicana, an 8.92ha farm in Lynfield, reportedly one of the largest privately owned blocks of land in inner Auckland. The land was owned by Bill Subritzky.

Preparing for the future and protecting ourselves through an Enduring Power of Attorney is important, says Minister for Senior Citizens HON JO GOODHEW.

Mere hours after the launch of NZACA's election campaign yesterday, came Associate Health Minister Jo Goodhew’s announcement of an additional $18 million to be spent over four years.

Managing public perceptions and remaining innovative were two key themes emerging from the annual Retirement Villages Association (RVA) conference held last week in Auckland.

A new three-minute documentary, Today, from New Zealand filmmakers captures life inside a South Auckland rest home.

*The RVA’s annual conference heads to Auckland this year, where, following its much-anticipated golf tournament, it will play host to an array of interesting speakers and topics.*

*Ryman Healthcare has signed a 150 year lease for 4.2 hectares of *Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei* land in Devonport. Ryman intends to build a new retirement village on the site for up to 300 residents, that will also provide *rest home, hospital and dementia care.

JUDE BARBACK looks at the benefits, challenges, practicalities and limitations of intergenerational activities.

New Zealand Seniors Party chair PAUL REA says it’s time for New Zealand to rethink its current pension scheme to deliver a fair deal for older Kiwis.

JUDE BARBACK joins a group of residents at Ocean Shores Village in Mount Maunganui for a cuppa to talk about food, exercise and village life in general.

A television ad inspires JUDE BARBACK to visit a charming retirement village in Tauranga.

The second iteration of the New Zealand Aged Care Workforce Survey is coming!

JUDE BARBACK talks to industry experts about the potential threats to New Zealand’s booming retirement village industry.

New Zealand’s retirement village industry is considered among the best in the world – so much so that other countries are seeking our help. But have we really got it right? JUDE BARBACK looks at the strengths and limitations of our retirement villages industry.

John Collyns believes retirement villages play an important role in meeting the needs of New Zealand’s ageing population.

Earl Gasparich believes that a solution to the aged care funding crisis exists in the merging of the retirement village and aged care business models.

Bill McDonald says we need to meet the changing tastes and expectations of the future residents of New Zealand’s aged care and retirement facilities.

Val Thomson and Imelda Corby stress the importance of residents having a say in industry decision-making as the retirement village industry moves forward.

Tom O’Connor says older people often don’t know what services and facilities are available to them nor how to access them.

DICK WILLIAMS of the Retirement Village Residents Association urges residents to sit up and take notice.

JUDE BARBACK takes a tour of Summerset by the Sea in Katikati.

JUDE BARBACK looks to the New Zealand Nutrition Foundation for advice on nutrition considerations for the older athlete.

Last year INsite reported on the findings of the Inclusion, Contribution and Connections (ICC) study led by Massey University’s Health and Ageing Research Team (HART). Here, we look at HART’s next steps.

INsite looks at the ambitious task ahead of the Ageing Well National Science Challenge, now underway.

JANET BROWN reports on the recent RVA conference in Melbourne.

INsite asks AVRIL GRANT about her job as head chef at Ryman Healthcare’s Charles Fleming Retirement Village in Waikanae.

The Commission for Financial Capability recently ran a competition to get people thinking about the changes to life, needs and lifestyle that occur over the 20–30 years that many spend in retirement.

New research shows that baby boomers want choice and control as they enter old age.

INsite asks experts in the retirement villages sector about industry trends, business decisions, investor information and legal advice.

JUDE BARBACK talks to Arvida Group chief executive Bill McDonald about the formidable task of getting the retirement and aged care sector’s newest player up and running.

JUDE BARBACK talks to Guy Eady about life after Oceania and the rise of his new venture, the BeGroup.

JUDE BARBACK finds a cheeky bunch of residents on her visit to Acacia Cove retirement village.

With the Bartlett v TerraNova pay equity case proceeding to the Supreme Court, JUDE BARBACK analyses the twists and turns of the case so far, and the far-reaching ramifications for aged care and other sectors.

Chief executive of Home and Community Health Association JULIE HAGGIE says that moves towards compensating home support workers fairly for the time and cost of travelling between clients is a step in the right direction for the sector.

New Zealand Aged Care Association annual conference, Wellington, October 2014

The new Minister for Senior Citizens makes her introductions. 

JUDE BARBACK discovers the ingredients of the truly person-centred approach taken by Elizabeth Knox Home and Hospital.

A leaky building presents a difficult situation for anyone, but for a retirement village operator there are many layers of complexity. JUDE BARBACK gets a whiff of the industry’s weathertight woes.

INsite asked residents at Metlifecare’s Papamoa Beach Village about what they like and don’t like about the design of their villas.

INsite talks to Claire Mooney about the third phase of a research project focused on understanding and addressing homophobic attitudes in New Zealand’s aged care facilities.

Daniel Barrington of Klein Architects talks to PAUL PATTON about what went into creating an exciting new medical facility for Christchurch.

JUDE BARBACK joins residents, locals, and Metlifecare bosses for the opening of a new walk at Tauranga’s Greenwood Park.

President of Grey Power Federation ROY REID believes good progress is being made towards better care for the aged.

Researchers from the New Zealand Work Research Institute (AUT University) are carrying out a survey of the New Zealand aged care workforce in April and May this year.

JUDE BARBACK looks at the ins and outs surrounding advance care planning in New Zealand. 

JUDE BARBACK considers the burdens placed on the older person caring for their spouse or partner and what support is out there for them.

New Zealand’s retirement village industry is sometimes criticised for failing to deliver a fair deal for residents, but what are the alternatives for older adults as they contemplate the next chapter of their lives? And are they able to deliver the same things villages can? Here, JUDE BARBACK takes a closer look at flatting for the elderly, retiring abroad and other options.

JAMES BEALE, head of investment management at Craigs Investment Partners, outlines recent trends for the big three listed retirement village operators.

Marketing expert GILL WALKER explains how to go about selling to the baby boomer generation, who want service, experience and social engagement.

MICHELLE BURKE discusses the legal ins and outs of terminating an ORA.

The New Zealand retirement village industry is well-established and flourishing, while Britain’s is still finding its feet. JUDE BARBACK talks to Richard Davis, chief executive of LifeCare Residences, about the differences and similarities between the two sectors.

Last issue INsite published an article about the controversial new Funded Family Care (FFC) policy, which allows a small proportion of disabled adults to employ a family carer. Here, a recipient of FFC (name withheld) gives her first-hand account of using the system.

Home-based care services play a significant role in keeping older New Zealanders living independently in their homes for longer, but providers face a number ofchallenges in delivering a quality service to this growing group of people. INsite invited an array of sector leaders to express their vision and their concerns for New Zealand’s home and community support services sector.

After years of court action, the Government has passed legislation to allow adult disabled people to employ family carers, but the new policy has left the sector seething. JUDE BARBACK reports.

The Eden Alternative looks set to find its niche in Australia’s new consumer directed care model. INsite talks to Sally Hopkins about the changing face of community care over the Tasman.

The Ministry of Health describes how collaboration between a number of agencies has enabled an improved complaints system for home and community support services.

DR CLAIRE MATTHEWS shares the disturbing findings of a survey which reveals how increasingly difficult it is for older New Zealanders to make ends meet.

With confirmation of poor care delivery in one corner of the sector and allegations of discriminatory pay levels in another, the public cries for more transparency and fairer pay in aged care are getting louder. Change feels imminent, but what shape will it take? By JUDE BARBACK.

The Government’s bid to centralise district health board food services have raised concerns over food quality and job losses.

Where should villages or rest homes look to provide the right sort of training for their catering staff?

MARTIN TAYLOR says it is tricky finding the balance between what residents want to eat and what dietitians say they should be eating.

Meals occur with such regularity that it is easy to forget what an important opportunity they are for allowing residents to socialise. Here, two providers share how their innovative approaches to meal times have made all the difference for their residents.

SARAH LEY confronts the complex and sensitive topic of eating disorders in older people and suggests that more awareness is needed.

INsite asks dietitian Jessica Bowden about the ins and outs of handling special and changing dietary requirements of older people.

Conference report

Retirement villages and aged care providers face the predictable challenge of providing an environment that will appeal to a group of people with diverse backgrounds, varying tastes, and differing care needs.

Eldernet mother-daughter duo shares the joys and frustrations of running Eldernet and Care Publications.

The challenges of providing a full continuum of care

INsite considers the new law in China which requires children to visit their elderly parents.

With Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) reporting reductions in claims as a result of falls since its Vitamin D in residential care programme was rolled out, it is now looking to expand the programme to older people in the wider community.

INsite asks a range of different stakeholders for their views on which direction the retirement village industry is heading.

GARY SYME discusses how his exercise programme, ‘Born Again Bodies’, combined with a healthy diet, can help older people can stay fit and healthy.

CLARE TEAGUE looks at the challenges in providing older disabled people the opportunity to “age in place”.

With the major corporate operators continuing to dominate the retirement village market, what are the repercussions for independent operators? JUDE BARBACK reports.

JUDE BARBACK visits Carter House in Te Puke, Bay of Plenty.

Difference in opinion

JUDE BARBACK examines some of the difficulties couples face in remaining together in old age.

JUDE BARBACK looks at how aged care facilities balance legal, nutritional, and specific dietary requirements with budget, resources, and changing taste preferences when it comes to menu planning.

INsite consults expert opinions to understand why malnutrition is of such concern in aged care facilities and what can be done about it.

Nearly a decade ago, Les (93) and Jean (89) Williams sold their family home and moved into a new two-bedroom chalet at Country Lodge in Matamata.