Why recognising religious sisters in care minutes matters

Policy reform rarely delivers neat moments of closure. More often, change comes incrementally – through drafts, consultations, clarifications, and patient follow-up. That is why recent confirmation that religious sisters who deliver direct care count fully toward care minutes requirements is worth reflecting on. Not just as a regulatory fix, but as a reminder that providers can influence – not just accept – the policy settings that shape care, to the benefit of older Australians.

For many Catholic providers, this issue was never theoretical. Religious sisters have long delivered hands-on care in residential services- as registered and enrolled nurses and personal care workers. Their contribution is part of the everyday delivery of aged care across the Catholic sector, including within CHA member organisations such as the Franciscan Sisters of the Heart of Jesus and the Little Sisters of the Poor who are central to this issue. Together with the Department and Aged Care Minister Sam Rae, we developed a solution that recognises the contributions of religious sisters in aged care appropriately.

Yet for a time, the rules failed to clearly recognise that contribution. Ambiguity around whether religious sisters’ direct care could be counted toward care minutes created uncertainty for providers – affecting compliance, star ratings, funding, workforce planning, and morale. More fundamentally, it raised a question of fairness: whether vocation and professional care work were being treated as something separate from, rather than integral to, the aged care workforce.

The updated rules now make it clear that where religious sisters are delivering direct care – whether as nurses or personal care workers – their care minutes count in exactly the same way as any other qualified staff member. That recognition matters. It matters for funding integrity. It matters for workforce fairness. It matters legally. And it matters for respecting the valuable work of people whose service to older Australians is inseparable from the mission and identity of Catholic care.

This change did not happen overnight. Nor did it happen in isolation. It came about through steady, consistent advocacy – our members raising concerns early, sharing evidence, explaining real-world impacts, and staying engaged even when answers were slow to come. It required trust, persistence, and collaboration across the sector, with the Department and with other stakeholders such as unions. And it required a willingness to keep pushing when the issue might otherwise have been dismissed as niche or technical.

That is worth reflecting on, because it tells us something important about the reform environment we are now operating in and the importance of advocacy.

We are moving into a period where aged care reform is no longer about setting high-level direction – that work has largely been done. Instead, the system is being reshaped through detailed rules, pricing decisions, reporting requirements, and transitional arrangements. These details can look dry on paper, but they have profound consequences for how care is delivered on the ground.

The care minutes clarification is a good example. On its face, it is a technical regulatory issue. In practice, it affects staffing models, financial viability, workforce morale, and how providers honour their mission. It also demonstrates something critical: providers are not passive recipients of reform. When we engage constructively, bring evidence, and articulate the impact on older people, we can shape outcomes – not just manage their consequences.

This lesson is especially relevant as attention now turns to the future of the Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP). In the coming months, parliamentary inquiries will examine how low-intensity, preventative services are funded, prioritised, and transitioned under the new aged care framework. For many providers, CHSP services sit at the very front door of care – supporting people earlier, keeping them connected, and preventing avoidable deterioration.

The next phase of aged care reform will be shaped not just by legislation, but by how well the system listens to those delivering and receiving care. As new inquiries unfold, and new issues emerge, the sector’s collective voice – grounded in experience and values – will once again be critical.

Advocacy does not always deliver quick wins. But when it is consistent, collaborative, and anchored in real care, it can – and does – change outcomes – for those receiving care but also those providing it. The recognition of religious sisters in care minutes is proof of that.

The task now is to carry that same confidence and commitment into the reforms that lie ahead.