Elderberry Expert Rating and Opinion
The Elderberry Index for Para Hills Residential Care is 3.48 out of 5, compared with 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.
Food enjoyment improved in the latest survey
69% positive in 2025, compared with 50% in 2024: 19 percentage points higher.
Staff communication is a relative strength
100% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 81.8% across other homes.
Worth a closer look
Reported care time falls short of a staffing target
Total care: 224 vs 214 minutes; registered nurses: 42 vs 43 minutes per resident per day.
Quality measures rating trails the national average
2 out of 5, compared with 3.07 across other rated homes in the August 2026 extract.
Compliance rating trails the national average
4 out of 5, compared with 4.83 across other rated homes in the August 2026 extract.
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 | 89.32% | 1354 |
| Getting needed care | 94.47% | 1354 |
| Confidence in staff skills | 89.48% | 1354 |
| Encouragement to stay independent | 88.59% | 1354 |
| Staff explaining things | 81.80% | 1354 |
| Enjoying the food | 70.26% | 1354 |
| Following up concerns | 85.19% | 1354 |
| Kind and caring staff | 95.96% | 1354 |
| Having a say in daily life | 93.19% | 1354 |
How much care and nursing does Para Hills Residential Care provide?
In January to March 2026, Para Hills Residential Care reported 224 minutes of care per resident per day, 10 minutes above its target of 214 minutes. Registered nurses provided 42 of those minutes, 1 minute below the registered-nurse target of 43.
Para Hills Residential Care met both its total and registered-nurse targets in three of the last four quarters. Across those four quarters, minutes of care per resident per day ranged from 223 to 232.
Who provides that care?
Of the 224 minutes, personal care workers provided 156 (69.6%), followed by registered nurses (42 minutes, 18.8%) and enrolled nurses (26 minutes, 11.6%). Para Hills Residential Care also reported spending on physiotherapists, podiatrists, speech pathologists, dietitians, and lifestyle and recreation workers in the same quarter.
What do residents say about Para Hills Residential Care?
Asked in the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey whether staff explain things to them, 100% of residents surveyed at Para Hills Residential Care answered “always” or “most of the time”, above the 81.8% average across other homes by 18.2 percentage points. When residents were asked whether the home is well run (100% against 89.3%) and whether staff follow up when they raise things (92% against 85.2%), answers were also above the average for other homes.
On 9 of the 10 questions other than food, answers at Para Hills Residential Care were at least 3 percentage points above the average for other homes, and on the rest they were within 3 percentage points.
Do residents feel safe and get the care they need?
When residents surveyed at Para Hills Residential Care were asked whether they feel safe, 85% answered “always” and 15% “most of the time”. When asked whether they get the care they need, 77% answered “always” and 23% “most of the time”.
Do residents have a say in daily life?
On choice and independence at Para Hills Residential Care, the share answering “always” or “most of the time” was 93% when asked whether they have a say in their daily activities and 92% when asked whether they are encouraged to do as much as possible for themselves.
What is the food like at Para Hills Residential Care?
In the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey, 69% of residents surveyed at Para Hills Residential Care said they like the food “always” or “most of the time”, 19 percentage points higher than the 50% recorded in 2024. Another 31% answered “some of the time”, and none answered “never”.
Food spending at Para Hills Residential Care in January to March 2026 was $13 per resident per day, 19% below the sector median of $16. In the same quarter, spending on dietitians was $0.90 per resident per day, 221% above the sector median of $0.28.
How are meals prepared?
According to Para Hills Residential Care, 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”.
69% of surveyed residents
Spending & preparation
Daily spending on food and dietitian services, and how meals are prepared.
Sources and Explanation
How does Para Hills Residential Care spend on resident care?
Total spending at Para Hills Residential Care in the 2024–25 financial year was $398.69 per resident per day, and care and nursing made up 72.0% of it. Care and nursing spending of $287.23 was 8% above the sector median of $264.85. 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 ($34.68), accommodation and maintenance ($33.05), and cleaning and laundry ($16.50) per resident per day. Within care and nursing, the largest amounts per resident per day went to personal care workers and assistants in nursing ($133.76) and registered nurses ($60.24).
