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April 16, 2015, 8:41 AM AEST

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Click to view in E-Magazine | Click to view Brochure

-By Claire Sut t les

In November of 1984 Florence Padman was a Registered Nurse with an impressive teaching
career under her belt. She was also the mother of a toddler and wanted more freedom over her
work schedule. Armed with her health care experience, and her husband Vivs business
background, the couple made the leap into the residential aged care industry. I thought that it
would be more exible for me working for myself, Mrs Padman laughs. But of course it was a
lot, lot harder.

Not surprisingly, the venture was fraught with challenges. Running a business was new to me,
Mrs Padman admits. And, we hadnt much money. The couple managed to buy the necessary
licence and found an ideal 25 bed home on a lovely Adelaide beach. However, just after signing
the lease and before settlement, the Padmans discovered a hidden amended clause that would
give the landlord ownership of both the building and the business after thirteen years. By this
time, Mrs Padman had already quit her job and the couple were wholeheartedly committed to
the new enterprise. We had to make a decision, and we bravely took the plunge as it was our
one opportunity to enter the aged care arena. Fortunately, the risk paid o, and the landlord
eventually sold the building to the Padmans.

After successfully running their rst home for several years, the Padmans sought to expand the
business. They soon learned that the only way to break into the industry more fully was to buy
older homes that came up for sale but often required signicant improvement. Thats been our
biggest strength, to be able to go in, conduct a thorough assessment of a home thats
underperforming, improve the standards, and improve overall performance, Mrs Padman
explains. In 1992, through tight nancial management, and the courage to go to the bank and
arrange loans, the Padmans were able to purchase a second home, followed shortly by a third.

As the business expanded, the Padmans became increasingly concerned that the aged care
industry had a poor image and not a great name. The couple quickly realised that they needed
to improve the prole of aged care in addition to enacting a business strategy that would keep
their homes sustainable. We looked at how we would move forward and get into a position
where we would stand out as market leaders, Mrs Padman reports. The couple believed that
the only way to accomplish this was to look at what the future elderly wanted and what we
ourselves would want for our parents.

After studying the situation, they decided that the key to improving the aged care industrys
name, and to sustainability, was providing better quality homes that people will want to come
to rather than need to come to. The Padmans also realised that the only way to oset the high
cost of new, upscale facilities was to oer Extra Service. Its very hard to build homes of that

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quality if you cannot have some funding that you can get fairly early in the piece that will reduce
your borrowings, Mrs Padman explains. In Extra Service facilities, the client pays a bond that
helps towards the cost of building; this enables providers to oer a higher standard of
accommodation. Even though bonds are a nancial necessity in the Extra Service market, the
Padmans are committed to keeping the cost as low as possible. Weve set the bond rate at a
fairly conservative level so the average home owner can still aord to come in, Mrs Padman
reports.

Because many older Australians cannot aord to pay a bond, Mrs Padman says that some
people philosophically have a problem with the Extra Service market. In response, she points
out that the same accreditation standards apply to all nursing homes, whether or not they are
Extra Service. Its the same criteria, she explains. Every nursing home resident is entitled to
high quality care whether they go into a traditional nursing home or an Extra Service home.
Extra Services are not care related, and Mrs Padman describes them as a package of lifestyle
services, that reflect the same consumer choices made in the broader community.

For example, In the community now, if you choose to dine in a fancy restaurant or the local
hotel, its your choice, she says. You may wish to pay ten dollars for a meal or fty dollars for a
meal, thats your choice. Extra Service is just that you choose to pay for some extra services
that you want. Padman Health Care also provides traditional homes to those who cant, or
prefer not to pay the extra cost. Mrs Padman reiterates that in these homes, the standard of
care is no less.

Skyline, Padman Health Cares rst Extra Service home, won a national award soon after it
opened, honouring it as one of the countrys best aged care facilities. The recognition continued.
A number of our Extra Service homes have won in subsequent years as outstanding homes,
Mrs Padman reports. In general, Padman Extra Service homes attempt to mirror the comforts
and luxuries that seniors enjoyed in the outside community. Residents have private rooms and
access to more social spaces, including multiple dining areas that can be booked for private
parties, a movie theatre room, a spa, a beauty salon, and a ballroom with a grand piano for
dances and other events. The Extra Service homes also oer more frequent outings. For
example, We may escort them to the theatre or movies if they wish, Mrs Padman says. We
make trips to local cafs for coee and cake or enjoy sh and chips by the beach. Wine is
oered with meals, high tea is served, family functions are abundant, and lifestyle therapists
oer more activities. Its just a bit more pampering that they can really enjoy, Mrs Padman
explains.

Padman Health Care has been extremely successful, and Mrs Padman gives a healthy portion of
the credit to her dedicated sta, some of whom have been with the company for over 18 years.
Weve got a very good team of senior staff who have grown with us and have all worked their
way up the ranks, she says. They are very, very committed. However, even with a core of
committed, long time sta, nding and retaining aged care workers is a hefty challenge. For us
workforce is the biggest issue, Mrs Padman reports. We cant be selective because there are
not enough numbers of people to employ. If you advertise you might not get many applicants.
Overall, even among those seeking employment, aged care isnt an area that many people
choose to work in. To maintain an adequate number of qualied sta, Padman Health Care has
begun employing Registered Nurses from overseas, particularly for homes in remote areas
where finding workers is especially difficult.

With so few people interested in an aged care career, Mrs Padman became concerned about
the future of the industry and how the needs of the future elderly would be met. To counteract
the problem, Padman Health Care launched a registered training organisation in 2008 to cultivate
and encourage new aged care talent. The training school has been a huge success, and quickly
expanded to oer multiple health care certicates. We hire most of our own students, Mrs
Padman reports. We can pick and choose the best from the group. Thats really helped with our
expansion of our services.

Mrs Padman says that her students are also recruited by other aged care organisations. Current
Padman Health Care employees also receive regular, ongoing training to ensure that sta and
management are all equipped to do their jobs as well as possible. In fact, Padman Health Care
has recently submitted an expression of interest to the Dept of Health & Ageing to become a
Teaching and Research Aged Care Service. This would involve setting up the organisation as a
hands-on teaching facility for university students pursuing degrees in nursing and aged care.

Padman Health Care has a lot to consider as it looks toward the future. Deregulation of the
industry is one area to watch, though Mrs Padman says that, for now, It doesnt appear that it
will happen in the near future. Regardless, the team is preparing for that possibility. Weve
been working toward making sure that we are in a position where we can sustain ourselves,
Mrs Padman reports. Conducting at least eight audits on each of its 14 homes every year helps
the company meet this goal. Internal audits give us a certain level of comfort that if we have
any gaps in our performance we [will] pick it up ourselves, Mrs Padman explains. The team is
also embracing new technology and software in order to ensure that the business is run as
efficiently as possible.

Another new step is partnering with upscale retirement villages so that, should the need arise, a
Padman nursing home is ready to receive village residents. Perhaps most importantly, the
company is considering new models of health care that will better t the future elderly. We are

looking at the demand for palliative care, and dementia care, and support for those with mental
health disorders, Mrs Padman reports. We also have to look at culturally sensitive services for
people from multi-cultural backgrounds, as well as services for people who are transgender,
homosexual or bisexual. Padman Health Care understands that the next generation of seniors
will want a dierent kind of support and care, and that identifying and providing this service is
vital to continued success. Much of our services may well happen in the community and in
peoples own homes. We are always looking at whats out there on the horizon, Mrs Padman
says. We need to ask ourselves what the needs will be and try to meet them at the highest
level.

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