Leah Wilson

Objective: To survey resident, joint resident/staff, family and staff committees in South Australian aged care hostels. Method: The managers of all 159 South Australian aged care hostels were surveyed concerning different types of committees, with 106 hostels participating. Results: Ninety percent of hostels had resident information meetings, 75% had staff committees but only 65% had resident committees and only 12% had joint resident/staff and/or family committees. While nearly all managers thought that their hostels provided adequate means for residents to express their wishes and concerns, some also indicated that additional committees would be beneficial. Greater participation of committee members was the most common suggestion for improvement. Conclusion: There is scope for more resident, joint resident/staff and family committees in aged care hostels. There is also a need for research to determine the relative benefits of each kind of committee and their optimum combination, and to identify ways of increasing participation in such committees.