Elderberry Expert Rating and Opinion
The Elderberry Index for Catholic Healthcare St Catherine's Aged Care is 3.6 out of 5, against a national average of 3.81. Three findings are worth a closer look.
Things we noticed
Worth a closer look
Food enjoyment fell in the latest survey
48% positive in 2025, compared with 73% in 2024: 25 percentage points lower.
Enjoying the food is below the survey average
48% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 70.3% across other homes.
Support for independence is below the survey average
68% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 88.6% across other homes.
Sources and Explanation
This is a programmatic interpretation of published data, not an in-person inspection or a separate expert-assigned score. The figures are the Elderberry Index and its four government component ratings; a measure the home has no published rating for is left out. Our rating methodology.
Ratings: August 2026. Survey comparisons: 2025 interview responses from that extract. Other Australian homes in the same ratings extract; survey comparisons also require the same interview year. Each eligible home has equal weight; missing/invalid values excluded. These are descriptive comparisons, not resident-weighted or adjusted for differences in care needs.
How findings are selected
Survey gaps of at least 3 percentage points, rating gaps of at least 0.3 stars, and changes of at least 10 percentage points can qualify. These are editorial selection thresholds, not tests of statistical significance. Benchmarks need at least 30 homes. Each side shows up to three eligible findings; missing values never become negative findings. Specific combined food evidence and sustained care-target results are prioritised, then larger differences. Respect and caring are grouped when both qualify.
Food spending uses the My Aged Care sector median for Jan–Mar 2026; resident enjoyment comes from the 2025 survey. The combined finding reports two separate observations from different reporting periods; it does not establish that spending caused the survey result. Year-to-year survey samples may differ and respondent counts are unavailable. Care consistency uses the latest four submitted, quality-checked care-minute records and direct RN minutes without EN top-up.
A lower compliance rating is a comparison with other homes, not a claim of an active sanction. Higher expenditure alone is not treated as better care. Unadjusted clinical incident measures are not used to rank quality here.
My Aged Care home profile · Government Star Ratings extract
Benchmark populations
| Measure | Mean | Other homes |
|---|---|---|
| Elderberry Index | 3.81 | 2365 |
| Residents’ experience | 3.62 | 2434 |
| Compliance | 4.83 | 2395 |
| Staffing | 3.18 | 2454 |
| Quality measures | 3.07 | 2456 |
| Respectful treatment | 95.86% | 1354 |
| Feeling safe | 96.46% | 1354 |
| How well the home is run | 89.33% | 1354 |
| Getting needed care | 94.48% | 1354 |
| Confidence in staff skills | 89.48% | 1354 |
| Encouragement to stay independent | 88.61% | 1354 |
| Staff explaining things | 81.82% | 1354 |
| Enjoying the food | 70.28% | 1354 |
| Following up concerns | 85.20% | 1354 |
| Kind and caring staff | 95.96% | 1354 |
| Having a say in daily life | 93.19% | 1354 |
What do residents say about Catholic Healthcare St Catherine's Aged Care?
In the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey, 68% of residents surveyed at Catholic Healthcare St Catherine's Aged Care answered “always” or “most of the time” when asked whether they are encouraged to do as much as possible for themselves, 20.6 percentage points below the average of 88.6% across other homes. Answers were also below the average for other homes when residents were asked whether staff follow up when they raise things (72% against 85.2%) and whether they feel safe (88% against 96.5%).
On 7 of the 10 questions other than food, answers at Catholic Healthcare St Catherine's Aged Care were at least 3 percentage points below the average for other homes, and on the rest they were within 3 percentage points.
What should you ask about on a visit?
On a visit, you can ask about how staff support residents to do things for themselves. Of residents asked whether they are encouraged to do as much as possible for themselves, 36% answered “always”, 32% “most of the time”, 28% “some of the time” and 4% “never”.
Do residents get the care they need?
When residents surveyed at Catholic Healthcare St Catherine's Aged Care were asked whether they get the care they need, 36% answered “always” and 52% “most of the time”.
What is the food like at Catholic Healthcare St Catherine's Aged Care?
In the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey, 48% of residents surveyed at Catholic Healthcare St Catherine's Aged Care said they like the food “always” or “most of the time”, 22.3 percentage points below the average of 70.3% across other homes. The share fell from 73% in 2024. Another 40% answered “some of the time” and 12% “never”.
In January to March 2026, Catholic Healthcare St Catherine's Aged Care spent $16 per resident per day on food, in line with the sector median of $16. In the same quarter, spending on dietitians was $0.05 per resident per day, 82% below the sector median of $0.28.
How are meals prepared?
Catholic Healthcare St Catherine's Aged Care reports that breakfast, lunch and dinner are all cooked fresh. All meals are prepared on site.
Do residents enjoy the food?
Residents who answered “Always” or “Most of the time”.
48% of surveyed residents
Spending & preparation
Daily spending on food and dietitian services, and how meals are prepared.
Sources and Explanation
How much care and nursing does Catholic Healthcare St Catherine's Aged Care provide?
In January to March 2026, Catholic Healthcare St Catherine's Aged Care reported 211 minutes of care per resident per day, 5 minutes above its target of 206 minutes. Registered nurses provided 43 of those minutes, 1 minute above the registered-nurse target of 42.
In one of the last four quarters, Catholic Healthcare St Catherine's Aged Care met both its total and registered-nurse targets. Across those four quarters, minutes of care per resident per day ranged from 192 to 211.
Who provides that care?
Of the 211 minutes, personal care workers provided 167 (79.1%), followed by registered nurses (43 minutes, 20.4%) and enrolled nurses (1 minute, 0.5%). In the same quarter, Catholic Healthcare St Catherine's Aged Care also reported spending on physiotherapists, podiatrists, dietitians, and lifestyle and recreation workers.
How does Catholic Healthcare St Catherine's Aged Care spend on resident care?
Spending on care and nursing at Catholic Healthcare St Catherine's Aged Care in the 2024–25 financial year was $228.77 per resident per day, 14% below the sector median of $264.85. Total spending was $410.06 per resident per day. These amounts are the home’s costs, not the fees a resident pays.
Where does the rest of the spending go?
Other categories included administration ($69.89), cleaning and laundry ($30.03), and accommodation and maintenance ($29.40) per resident per day. Within care and nursing, the largest amounts per resident per day went to personal care workers and assistants in nursing ($136.61) and registered nurses ($62.71).
