#AgedCareStories During the covid outbreak at dad’s, family would get updates from management every few days. I remember the first update that announced a resident had died. By this stage, my dad had been sick with covid for over a week and he had taken a turn #COVID19vic 1/6

I replied with: 'if my dad passes, which could be soon, I’d like his photo to be in the update along with his name. Do you think that could be an option for family members? I think it would be nice. We need to celebrate these people.'

The response I got was, 'No'. No, they couldn’t possibly offer that. They couldn’t name my dad or any of his housemates in their formal communications. The communications team & whoever else wouldn’t allow that option for family who may want it.

This wasn’t a Dan Andrews press conference, this was a community of people that my dad lived with for the past 12 months. It was a community I was part of. I chatted with dad’s friends and their loved ones every weekend.

My dad shared meals & laughs with the same people every day for 12 months. I also had my favourites that I would chat with every visit. But I don’t know if those people died or not. I don’t know if any of dad’s friends survived. They were swept under the rug.

10 of my dad’s housemates—25% of the residents—died from covid within 2-3 weeks. They were never given the option to be named. That breaks my heart. I’m sure the provider has their weird reasons, but to me it shows their lack of care & respect. #AgedCareScandal #AgedCareCrisis