Elderberry Expert Rating and Opinion
The Elderberry Index for St Vincent's Care Services Hawthorn is 4.3 out of 5, compared with a national average of 3.81. Three findings stand out as positive.
Things we noticed
Positive standouts
Food enjoyment is above average, with lower reported spending
89% enjoy meals vs 67.3% across other homes; spending is $14 vs a $16 sector median.
Residents consistently describe respectful, caring staff
100% positive on respect and 100% on caring staff, versus 95.4% and 95.4% across other homes.
Care and registered-nurse targets met in four reported quarters
The latest quarter records 215 minutes against a 207-minute daily care target; RN time is 51 against 42.
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: 2026 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 2026 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 | 95.35% | 1080 |
| Feeling safe | 96.25% | 1080 |
| How well the home is run | 88.08% | 1080 |
| Getting needed care | 94.42% | 1080 |
| Confidence in staff skills | 89.08% | 1080 |
| Encouragement to stay independent | 87.15% | 1079 |
| Staff explaining things | 80.24% | 1078 |
| Enjoying the food | 67.32% | 1080 |
| Following up concerns | 84.21% | 1079 |
| Kind and caring staff | 95.41% | 1080 |
| Having a say in daily life | 92.70% | 1080 |
How much care and nursing does St Vincent's Care Services Hawthorn provide?
St Vincent's Care Services Hawthorn reported 215 minutes of care per resident per day in January to March 2026, 8 minutes above its target of 207 minutes. Of those minutes, 51 came from registered nurses, 9 minutes above the registered-nurse target of 42.
St Vincent's Care Services Hawthorn met both its total and registered-nurse targets in each of the last four quarters. Minutes of care per resident per day ranged from 201 to 215 across those four quarters.
Who provides that care?
Personal care workers provided 164 of the 215 minutes (76.3%), followed by registered nurses (51 minutes, 23.7%). In the same quarter, St Vincent's Care Services Hawthorn also reported spending on physiotherapists, podiatrists, speech pathologists, dietitians, and lifestyle and recreation workers.
What is the food like at St Vincent's Care Services Hawthorn?
In the 2026 Residents’ Experience Survey, 89% of residents surveyed at St Vincent's Care Services Hawthorn said they like the food “always” or “most of the time”, 21.7 percentage points above the average of 67.3% across other homes. The share fell from 95% in 2025. Another 12% answered “some of the time”, and none answered “never”.
In January to March 2026, St Vincent's Care Services Hawthorn spent $14 per resident per day on food, 13% below the sector median of $16. Spending on dietitians in the same quarter was $0.84 per resident per day, 200% above the sector median of $0.28.
How are meals prepared?
According to St Vincent's Care Services Hawthorn, 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”.
89% 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 St Vincent's Care Services Hawthorn?
In the 2026 Residents’ Experience Survey, 94% of residents surveyed at St Vincent's Care Services Hawthorn answered “always” or “most of the time” when asked whether staff explain things to them, 13.8 percentage points above the average of 80.2% across other homes. When residents were asked whether they have a say in their daily activities (100% against 92.7%) and whether they are encouraged to do as much as possible for themselves (94% against 87.1%), answers were also above the average for other homes.
At St Vincent's Care Services Hawthorn, answers were at least 3 percentage points above the average for other homes on 9 of the 10 questions other than food, and within 3 percentage points on the rest.
Do residents feel safe and get the care they need?
When residents surveyed at St Vincent's Care Services Hawthorn were asked whether they feel safe, 76% answered “always” and 18% “most of the time”. When asked whether they get the care they need, 65% answered “always” and 35% “most of the time”.
How does St Vincent's Care Services Hawthorn spend on resident care?
In the 2024–25 financial year, St Vincent's Care Services Hawthorn spent $437.63 per resident per day, and care and nursing made up 57.2% of it. Care and nursing spending of $250.16 was 6% below 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?
Other categories included accommodation and maintenance ($59.95), administration ($44.21), and cleaning and laundry ($27.99) per resident per day. Within care and nursing, the largest amounts per resident per day went to personal care workers and assistants in nursing ($147.53) and registered nurses ($60.06).
