‘I've heard of it but had nothing… not much to do with it’: The experience of older people and their families with the Resident of the Day (ROD) process in Victorian aged care facilities

Objectives

To explore the experiences of older people living in Australian residential aged care facilities (RACFs) and families of older people living in RACFs, regarding the process of Resident of the Day (ROD; sometimes referred to as a resident review) and their knowledge of how these assessments inform care planning.

Methods

Semi-structured interviews were used to engage residents and families in conversations about their experiences and knowledge of the assessment associated with ROD and subsequent care planning. A reflexive thematic analysis was used to generate findings.

Results

Twenty-six interviews were conducted in four RACFs across Victoria, diverse in terms of geographic location and provider type. Those residents who had some awareness of the ROD described the process only in superficial terms. Connections between ROD and care planning were unable to be made by most residents. Family members had a greater level of awareness of the ROD, although they were unable to describe the process or purpose and did not connect it to care planning.

Conclusions

Despite being undertaken in all Victorian RACFs, residents and families have little or no knowledge of the ROD process, purpose or what happens to the information collected.