Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has today opened a $30m extension to Ryman Healthcare’s Nellie Melba retirement village, confirming its status as the largest full continuum of care village in Australia.
Premier Andrews and Ryman Healthcare Australia CEO Cameron Holland opened the new 41-apartment complex in Wheelers Hill. Having arrived in Victoria in 2014, Rhyman Healthcare, a New Zealand Based company, has operated the ‘continuum of care’ model since the 1980s. The model is only in its infancy in Australia.
Ryman villages offer independent retirement living and assisted living in serviced apartments, as well as housing a care centre on-site which provides low care, high care, and specialist dementia care.
Premier Andrews noted that the opening of the new complex was a point of pride for the state and for the company, and said the continuum of care was a stunning example of what is possible if support is given to people in their local communities.
“The best form is the Ryman Healthcare form. This business provides the most stunning example of that model of care and it only operates in the great state of Victoria,” said Premier Andrews.
“This is not my first visit, and it won’t be my last because it is a stunning example of what can be achieved if you run a good business and at the centre of that business is a sense of purpose, good values, and a sense that your clients are part of your family.”
The expansion of Nellie Melba has happened sequentially to the announcement from the University of Technology in Sydney that it would undertake a research study into the potential health benefits of continuum of care villages for older Australians.
University of Technology Sydney Professor, David Brown said the research project will focus on financial outcomes and care of the model and will examine what barriers there are in the Australian aged care industry.
“Older people in Australia and their carers have great difficulty navigating their way along the care and ageing journey,” Prof. Brown said.
“This is mostly due to the highly fragmented nature of the aged care system and the complexity of the aged care transition points, such as retirement living to residential aged care, which often occurs in times of crisis. This situation makes for an often costly and traumatic experience.”
Ryman Healthcare Australia CEO Cameron Holland said that the expansion underscored the huge demand for the model to be implemented on its side of the Tasman.
“People moving into a Ryman village enjoy an active, independent lifestyle in a vibrant retirement community, but have the peace of mind in knowing that if their health needs change they can be looked after right where they are.”
Founded in Christchurch in 1984, Ryman Healthcare now owns and operates 45 retirement villages in New Zealand and Australia, houses more than 13,200 residents, and employs 6,700 staff.
