Wednesday, 13 November 2024

Ministers statements: senior citizens

Ingrid STITT (Western Metropolitan – Minister for Mental Health, Minister for Ageing, Minister for Multicultural Affairs) (12:20): I rise to update the house on a month of celebrating our senior Victorians. The Victorian Seniors Festival officially concluded on 31 October after a jam-packed month of country concerts, dances exhibitions, film festivals and sporting activities right across metro Melbourne and regional Victoria. The festival was all about joy, connection and celebration, and it showcased the passion and creativity of our seniors. It was a pleasure to join a number of events across the month.

I also had the pleasure of meeting with nurses, clinical managers and other staff from our Victorian public sector residential aged care services at their statewide forum last week. The focus of the forum was getting PSRACS ready for aged care reform, with a focus on the Commonwealth’s new aged care act as well as sharing the knowledge and skills that help us to deliver the best care in the right location for older Victorians. It was excellent to chat with a number of nurses one on one and hear firsthand from them about their incredible work. I look forward to taking them up on their many invitations to visit their services and meet the teams delivering high-quality care right across our communities. I thank our PSRACS staff for the work they do every day to provide high-quality care to older Victorians living in our public facilities. Our Victorian PSRACS continue to lead the nation, and I am confident that we are well placed to continue to deliver that very high-quality care as we move through these new reforms from the Commonwealth.