Elderberry Expert Rating and Opinion
The Elderberry Index for Oxa Care is 3.53 out of 5, compared with a national average of 3.81. One finding stands out as positive, and three are worth a closer look.
Things we noticed
Positive standouts
Quality measures rating exceeds the national average
4 out of 5, compared with 3.06 across other rated homes in the August 2026 extract.
Worth a closer look
Reported care time falls short of a staffing target
Total care: 201 vs 202 minutes; registered nurses: 40 vs 41 minutes per resident per day.
Enjoying the food is below the survey average
45% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 70.3% across other homes.
Food enjoyment fell in the latest survey
45% positive in 2025, compared with 60% in 2024: 15 percentage points lower.
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 | 3.06 | 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 | 89.49% | 1354 |
| Encouragement to stay independent | 88.60% | 1354 |
| Staff explaining things | 81.81% | 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 | 93.20% | 1354 |
What is the food like at Oxa Care?
In the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey, 45% of residents surveyed at Oxa Care said they like the food “always” or “most of the time”, 25.3 percentage points below the average of 70.3% across other homes. The share fell from 60% in 2024. Another 53% answered “some of the time” and 3% “never”.
Food spending at Oxa Care in January to March 2026 was $19 per resident per day, 19% above the sector median of $16. In the same quarter, spending on dietitians was $0.35 per resident per day, 25% above the sector median of $0.28.
How are meals prepared?
Oxa 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”.
45% of surveyed residents
Spending & preparation
Daily spending on food and dietitian services, and how meals are prepared.
Sources and Explanation
What do residents say about Oxa Care?
In the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey, 79% of residents surveyed at Oxa Care answered “always” or “most of the time” when asked whether staff know what they are doing, 10.5 percentage points below the average of 89.5% across other homes. When residents were asked whether they feel safe (86% against 96.5%) and whether they are encouraged to do as much as possible for themselves (79% against 88.6%), answers were also below the average for other homes.
On 7 of the 10 questions other than food, answers at Oxa 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 the training staff receive. Of residents asked whether staff know what they are doing, 32% answered “always”, 47% “most of the time” and 21% “some of the time”; none answered “never”.
Do residents get the care they need?
Asked whether they get the care they need, 47% of residents surveyed at Oxa Care answered “always” and 41% “most of the time”.
How does Oxa Care spend on resident care?
In the 2024–25 financial year, Oxa Care spent $234.52 per resident per day on care and nursing, 11% below the sector median of $264.85. Total spending was $376.23 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?
Spending on other categories included accommodation and maintenance ($44.34), cleaning and laundry ($30.94) and administration ($21.59) per resident per day. Within care and nursing, the largest amounts per resident per day went to personal care workers and assistants in nursing ($126.57) and registered nurses ($54.58).
How much care and nursing does Oxa Care provide?
Oxa Care reported 201 minutes of care per resident per day in January to March 2026, 1 minute below its target of 202 minutes. Of those minutes, 40 came from registered nurses, 1 minute below the registered-nurse target of 41.
Oxa Care met both its total and registered-nurse targets in none of the last four quarters. Across those four quarters, minutes of care per resident per day ranged from 195 to 209.
Who provides that care?
Personal care workers provided 157 minutes per resident per day, followed by registered nurses (40 minutes) and enrolled nurses (5 minutes). In the same quarter, Oxa Care also reported spending on physiotherapists, podiatrists, speech pathologists, dietitians, and lifestyle and recreation workers.
