Elderberry Expert Rating and Opinion
The Elderberry Index for Rockingham Nursing Home is 3.78 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’ experience rating exceeds the national average
4 out of 5, compared with 3.62 across other rated homes in the August 2026 extract.
More residents feel they have a say in daily life
100% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 93.2% across other homes.
Worth a closer look
Quality measures rating trails the national average
2 out of 5, compared with 3.07 across other rated homes in the August 2026 extract.
Confidence in staff skills is below the survey average
75% answered “Always” or “Most of the time”, compared with 89.5% across other homes.
Fewer residents say staff explain things consistently
75% 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 | 89.49% | 1354 |
| Encouragement to stay independent | 88.59% | 1354 |
| Staff explaining things | 81.82% | 1354 |
| Enjoying the food | 70.26% | 1354 |
| Following up concerns | 85.20% | 1354 |
| Kind and caring staff | 95.96% | 1354 |
| Having a say in daily life | 93.19% | 1354 |
What is the food like at Rockingham Nursing Home?
In the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey, 66% of residents surveyed at Rockingham Nursing Home said they like the food “always” or “most of the time”, 4.3 percentage points below the average of 70.3% across other homes. The share fell from 69% in 2024. Another 8% answered “some of the time” and 25% “never”.
Food spending at Rockingham Nursing Home in January to March 2026 was $22 per resident per day, 38% above the sector median of $16. Spending on dietitians in the same quarter was $0.81 per resident per day, 189% above the sector median of $0.28.
How are meals prepared?
According to Rockingham Nursing Home, breakfast, lunch and dinner are all prepared by the cook-chill method. Of all meals, 21% are prepared on site and the rest off site.
Do residents enjoy the food?
Residents who answered “Always” or “Most of the time”.
66% 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 Rockingham Nursing Home?
In the 2025 Residents’ Experience Survey, 100% of residents surveyed at Rockingham Nursing Home answered “always” or “most of the time” when asked whether they have a say in their daily activities, above the 93.2% average across other homes by 6.8 percentage points. When residents were asked whether staff treat them with respect (100% against 95.9%) and whether staff are kind and caring (100% against 96.0%), answers were also above the average for other homes.
The widest gap below other homes came when residents were asked whether staff know what they are doing: 75% answered “always” or “most of the time”, against an average of 89.5%. In all, answers on 3 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 the training staff receive. When residents were asked whether staff know what they are doing, 33% answered “always”, 42% “most of the time” and 25% “some of the time”; none answered “never”.
Do residents feel safe and get the care they need?
Asked whether they feel safe, 83% of residents surveyed at Rockingham Nursing Home answered “always” and 17% “most of the time”. When asked whether they get the care they need, 50% answered “always” and 42% “most of the time”.
How much care and nursing does Rockingham Nursing Home provide?
Rockingham Nursing Home reported 241 minutes of care per resident per day in January to March 2026, 4 minutes above its target of 237 minutes. Of those minutes, 47 came from registered nurses, matching the registered-nurse target of 47.
Rockingham Nursing Home met both its total and registered-nurse targets in two of the last four quarters. Minutes of care per resident per day ranged from 230 to 242 across those four quarters.
Who provides that care?
Per resident per day, personal care workers provided 194 minutes, followed by registered nurses (47 minutes) and enrolled nurses (1 minute). In the same quarter, Rockingham Nursing Home also reported spending on physiotherapists, speech pathologists and dietitians.
How does Rockingham Nursing Home spend on resident care?
In the 2024–25 financial year, Rockingham Nursing Home spent $469.94 per resident per day, and care and nursing made up 57.1% of it. Care and nursing spending of $268.15 was 1% 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 accommodation and maintenance ($99.51), administration ($46.12), and cleaning and laundry ($24.06) per resident per day. Within care and nursing, the largest amounts per resident per day went to personal care workers and assistants in nursing ($155.31) and registered nurses ($70.64).
