Elderberry Expert Rating and Opinion
The Elderberry Index for Kalkarni Residency is 3.08 out of 5, against a national average of 3.81. Three findings stand out as positive, and three are worth a closer look.
Things we noticed
Positive standouts
Residents consistently describe respectful, caring staff
100% positive on respect and 100% on caring staff, versus 95.9% and 96.0% across other homes.
Residents report stronger support for independence
100% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 88.6% across other homes.
Residents show greater confidence in staff skills
100% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 89.5% across other homes.
Worth a closer look
Reported care time falls short of a staffing target
Total care: 233 vs 232 minutes; registered nurses: 45 vs 46 minutes per resident per day.
Quality measures rating trails the national average
1 out of 5, compared with 3.07 across other rated homes in the August 2026 extract.
Fewer residents say staff explain things consistently
54% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 81.8% 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 | 96.45% | 1354 |
| How well the home is run | 89.33% | 1354 |
| Getting needed care | 94.47% | 1354 |
| Confidence in staff skills | 89.47% | 1354 |
| Encouragement to stay independent | 88.58% | 1354 |
| Staff explaining things | 81.83% | 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 Kalkarni Residency?
Asked in the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey whether they are encouraged to do as much as possible for themselves, 100% of residents surveyed at Kalkarni Residency answered “always” or “most of the time”, above the 88.6% average across other homes by 11.4 percentage points. When residents were asked whether staff know what they are doing (100% against 89.5%) and whether they have a say in their daily activities (100% against 93.2%), answers were also above the average for other homes.
The widest gap below other homes came when residents were asked whether staff explain things to them: 54% answered “always” or “most of the time”, against an average of 81.8%. Altogether, answers on 2 of the 10 questions other than food were at least 3 percentage points below the average for other homes.
What should you ask about on a visit?
On a visit, you can ask about how staff explain changes to care. Of residents asked whether staff explain things to them, 46% answered “always”, 8% “most of the time”, 38% “some of the time” and 8% “never”.
Do residents feel safe and get the care they need?
When residents surveyed at Kalkarni Residency were asked whether they feel safe, 77% answered “always” and 23% “most of the time”. When asked whether they get the care they need, 77% answered “always” and 23% “most of the time”.
What is the food like at Kalkarni Residency?
When residents surveyed at Kalkarni Residency for the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey were asked whether they like the food, 46% answered “always” or “most of the time”, 24.3 percentage points below the average of 70.3% across other homes. The share fell from 71% in 2024. Another 38% answered “some of the time” and 15% “never”.
Food spending at Kalkarni Residency in January to March 2026 was $16 per resident per day, in line with the sector median of $16. Spending on dietitians in the same quarter was $0.28 per resident per day, in line with the sector median of $0.28.
How are meals prepared?
According to Kalkarni Residency, 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”.
46% of surveyed residents
Spending & preparation
Daily spending on food and dietitian services, and how meals are prepared.
Sources and Explanation
How does Kalkarni Residency spend on resident care?
In the 2024–25 financial year, Kalkarni Residency spent $342.31 per resident per day on care and nursing, 29% above the sector median of $264.85. Spending across all categories was $517.11 per resident per day. These figures are the home’s costs, not the fees a resident pays.
Where does the rest of the spending go?
Spending on other categories included administration ($71.64), accommodation and maintenance ($40.63), and cleaning and laundry ($25.67) per resident per day. Within care and nursing, the largest amounts per resident per day went to personal care workers and assistants in nursing ($192.58) and registered nurses ($108.98).
How much care and nursing does Kalkarni Residency provide?
Kalkarni Residency reported 233 minutes of care per resident per day in January to March 2026, 1 minute above its target of 232 minutes. Registered nurses provided 45 of those minutes, 1 minute below the registered-nurse target of 46.
Kalkarni Residency met both its total and registered-nurse targets in two of the last four quarters. Across those four quarters, minutes of care per resident per day ranged from 232 to 241.
Who provides that care?
Of the 233 minutes, personal care workers provided 188 (80.7%), followed by registered nurses (45 minutes, 19.3%). Kalkarni Residency also reported spending on physiotherapists, podiatrists, dietitians, and lifestyle and recreation workers in the same quarter.
