I'm Len. I'm a Geriatrician, I'm also a Researcher. And in that role, I've been quite involved with the Department of Health in developing the Star Rating system.
The main intent of the Star Ratings is to give older people and their families some information that helps them make choices. But it also has the nice effect of encouraging the facilities themselves to improve their performance. So most of them are trying to make sure that they get as many stars as they can and they're making changes that are positive.
The Star Rating system rates a home from one to five, where five is excellent and one needs considerable improvement.
But that's made up of four ingredients that look at quality from a number of perspectives. And the most important of them is consumer experience. And this reflects interviews of people that are living in care. And this is done once a year. People are interviewed and they are commenting on the quality of care that they're receiving. And I think for older people, knowing that the current residents are happy or otherwise with the care they're getting is probably the most important thing you want to think about.
The good thing about Star Ratings is that they're there on the internet. There's a lot of work that's gone into constructing them and making them available, and it's a good way to start the process of making decisions.