Time Well Spent

Dane Mitchell and Rose Plater
  • 0.0 (0)
  • ENTREPRENEURSHIP
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Time Well Spent is a podcast exploring aged care, the NDIS, and health — through candid conversations with executives and thought leaders shaping the industry. Hosted by Dane Mitchell (Optimum Allied Health) and Rose Plater (Paynters), the show is built on authentic conversations. Each 40-60 minute episode asks bold, sometimes controversial, questions about reform, workforce, finance, design, and innovation — opening space for leaders to tell us what they really think about the industry and its future.

  1. Are We Regulating Ourselves Out of Growth? The Funding Catch-22 with Mel Argent

    2D AGO

    Are We Regulating Ourselves Out of Growth? The Funding Catch-22 with Mel Argent

    It’s not news that we need more beds. More providers, more investment. more innovation. At the same time, it’s getting harder and harder to enter into the market, harder to make a return, and harder to speak up about what sustainability actually requires. So where do we go from here? Today Dane and Rose are talking with Mel Argent, from Rockpool Residential Aged Care. They’re talking about everything from the stigma around making profit, what Rockpool is doing differently with their new homes, how the current system is making it impossible to get funding and questioning whether our compliance settings are fit for purpose. Key moments: 0:00 -  Why Rockpool going back to startup mode gave them a rare opportunity to redesign everything under the new Act 5:30 - The non-negotiables Mel insisted on during the Regis negotiation 7:28 - Why can’t profit and good care co-exist in the Aged Care sector? 12:33 - The funding catch-22 no one talks about but will seriously impact our ability to create 80,000 beds 16:17 -  “I can’t believe this is aged care” – what a Rockpool home is designed to feel like 25:23 - The systems, technology and legislative shifts Mel is rethinking before opening the next homes 28:41 - Are care minutes reshaping the workforce in ways we didn’t intend? 33:50 - What is the 5-Star Rating System actually measuring? 39:00 - What would happen if we stopped competing with each other and started collaborating? 43:00 - Restrictive practice, reporting, and whether fear is driving behaviour 55:53 - What bold leadership looks like in aged care right now — Visit www.thepurefoodco.com to hear more about how The Pure Food Co could help with your meal service. Find out how your organisation is performing with Stewart Brown by visiting www.stewartbrown.com.au/financial-surveys Connect with Dane and Rose or the Podcast on Linkedin. https://www.linkedin.com/in/dane-mitchell-763ba524 https://www.linkedin.com/in/rose-plater-0a111a129 https://www.linkedin.com/company/time-well-spent-podcast If you want to book a free Reablement Planning Workshop with Optimum Allied Health, visit www.opthealth.com.au/tws If you’re starting to scope out your next project, get in touch with Paynters over at www.paynters.com.au

    1 hr
  2. Running Residential Care Outside the System: Why the industry’s "Black Sheep" Might Be Right with Paul Brown from LDK

    APR 27

    Running Residential Care Outside the System: Why the industry’s "Black Sheep" Might Be Right with Paul Brown from LDK

    We talk a lot about fixing aged care. And a lot of it comes down to the system we’ve built. But what if the problem isn’t just the system… it’s the way we’ve designed the entire experience of ageing? In this episode, Dane and Rose sit down with Paul Browne from LDK, who’s built a model trying to challenge exactly that. From the “one move promise”… to why today’s residents expect something completely different… to what happens when you stop building aged care like a hospital and start thinking about it like hospitality. Because if the expectations of this generation have changed… the question is whether the sector is actually keeping up. Key moments: 0:00 - How does a police officer from QLD end up building a retirement village empire? 4:23 - Today’s residents have travelled, spent and lived differently… so why are we still building for a completely different generation?  7:43 - The gap between retirement living and aged care, and why the system makes it harder than it needs to be  8:51 - The promise that shaped the entire LDK model: never having to move into a nursing home  12:53 -  Why exit fees are becoming harder to justify, and what a simpler “money in, money out” model looks like 23:08 - Do residents actually care about being around death… or have we just assumed they do?  27:52 - Why running aged care like a hotel might be closer to the answer than running it like a hospital  32:10 -  If people are living longer and staying longer… what does that do to the viability of the model?  39:44 - There’s nowhere for people to go… so where does that leave retirement villages and hospitals?  47:13 - What changes when you stop trying to fit inside government frameworks and build outside them instead  50:15 - “Support at Home” is here… but is it actually working the way it was intended to?  52:04 - Could this model work outside high-income areas… or is it only viable for a certain demographic?  1:02:29 - Why most operators can’t replicate this model and what actually breaks when you try to scale it.  — And if you want to connect with Dane and Rose or the Podcast, you can find them on Linkedin. https://www.linkedin.com/in/dane-mitchell-763ba524 https://www.linkedin.com/in/rose-plater-0a111a129 https://www.linkedin.com/company/time-well-spent-podcast

    1h 10m
  3. Texture Modified Food and Dignified Dining with Chris Deed from the Pure Food Co

    APR 20

    Texture Modified Food and Dignified Dining with Chris Deed from the Pure Food Co

    The New South Wales coroner recently released findings into two deaths at a Sydney aged care home. Two residents on modified diets for swallowing difficulties.Both choked to death on food they should never have been given. When something like this happens, the response is often to look for who got it wrong. But what if the real issue is how easy it is for things to go wrong in the first place? In this episode, Dane and Rose sit down with Chris Deed from Pure Food Co to discuss what’s actually happening inside aged care kitchens, where the gaps are between care plans and reality, and why something as fundamental as food is still one of the biggest risks in the system. Key moments: 0:00: Two deaths, one system: how does something like this actually happen inside a facility? 2:55: 50% of residents have swallowing difficulties… what that really looks like in your kitchen day to day 04:42: No speech pathologist on site: who’s actually making the call on a resident’s diet? 05:51: Care plan vs reality: how does the wrong meal still end up on the plate? 10:59: IDDSI explained and why misunderstanding it creates real risk 13:07: “Dignity of risk.” Are we signing these off too quickly without fully understanding the consequences? 16:06: Why even well-run kitchens struggle to deliver consistency (and where risk creeps in) 19:16: If nutrition changes outcomes… Why isn’t it treated like a clinical intervention? 21:03: Protein, malnutrition, and what most providers are missing across the day 25:29: What a good texture-modified meal actually looks and tastes like (and why that matters more than you think) 27:11: New Aged Care Act: does the sector finally have the framework to get food right? 31:59: Choking deaths have doubled. What needs to change immediately? 32:09: The real problem Pure Food Co was built to solve 37:57: When food gets done properly… What actually changes for residents? 39:37: From anxiety to eating in the dining room again… A real example of impact 41:39: Inside the kitchen: What most people don’t realise about how aged care food is actually delivered If you want to learn more about The Pure Food Co, head over to www.thepurefoodco.com/aus/,or if you want to chat more with Chris, get in touch on LinkedIn here. Find out more about Pure Food's latest white paper Feeding Strength & Dignity here. — And if you want to connect with Dane and Rose or the Podcast, you can find them on Linkedin. https://www.linkedin.com/in/dane-mitchell-763ba524 https://www.linkedin.com/in/rose-plater-0a111a129 https://www.linkedin.com/company/time-well-spent-podcast

    46 min
  4. Dr Nick Coatsworth: “We Never Asked Older Australians What They Wanted.” COVID, Regulation and the Consequences We’re Still Living With

    APR 13

    Dr Nick Coatsworth: “We Never Asked Older Australians What They Wanted.” COVID, Regulation and the Consequences We’re Still Living With

    We spent two years trying to protect older Australians. But did anyone actually ask them what they wanted? During COVID, aged care became one of the most tightly controlled environments in the country. Residents were isolated, families were locked out and providers were making big decisions without any solid evidence. We’re sure you don’t need to be reminded how that played out. Today Dane and Rose are talking with someone who is in the system currently with his mum going through the aged care funding packages as we speak - the Former Commonwealth Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Dr Nick Coatsworth. Nick is reflecting not only on what those decisions looked like in real time, but what we got wrong, and why some of the hardest questions still haven’t been answered. Including: If another pandemic hit tomorrow, would anything change? Key moments: 0:00 - How a hospital doctor becomes the public face of Australia’s pandemic response 6:03 - What the government got wrong when it came to isolating aged care residents 9:18 - Who should have been making the calls during the pandemic and whether aged care providers were left to carry too much of that burden? 13:28 - The lingering impact of COVID on how the sector now thinks about risk, safety and infection control 18:41 - Is a lack of honest conversations with the public a recurring theme? 26:23 - The statistic that changes how you look at COVID in aged care and what it actually tells us about how residents live and die 37:51 - If another pandemic hit tomorrow, would we be prepared? Would there still be mandates? 43:43 - Why don’t we ever seem to learn from previous mistakes? 50:02 - The conversations most families avoid and why they matter more than anything else when it comes to end-of-life care  57:01 - What made Nick publicly push back on the misinformation bill and what that reveals about trust and control 59:53 -  How badly did COVID damage our trust in institutions? Did it just expose where it was already breaking down? 1:02:03- The one question we didn’t ask during COVID that should shape every future response

    1h 7m
  5. The Financial Reality of Aged Care in 2026 (And Why It’s Getting Worse). The Latest Report with Stuart Hutcheon

    APR 6

    The Financial Reality of Aged Care in 2026 (And Why It’s Getting Worse). The Latest Report with Stuart Hutcheon

    Metro homes make up around 65% of the sector. So they should be the most financially stable right? They’re performing the worst. At the same time, more than half of providers are still losing money… and we’re being told the system is improving. So what are the numbers actually telling us? In this episode, Dane and Rose sit down with Stuart Hutcheon from StewartBrown to break down the latest benchmarking data and where the pressure is really coming from. From funding models that don’t leave room for a margin… to providers not pulling the levers already available to them… to a system that still isn’t set up to attract investment. Because if these numbers are right, we’re still a long way from a model that works. Key moments: 0:00 - Why metro homes (65% of the sector) are now the worst performing financially… and what’s driving that shift 6:34 - 60% of providers are still losing money… Are the reforms actually fixing anything? 9:31 - What it really takes to get new beds approved… and why providers are hitting roadblocks before they even start? 15:04 - The accommodation review 21:27 - Should the market be setting RAD prices in metro areas… and what happens if it does?  24:50 - The “everyday living” gap: why even with higher supplements, providers are still running at a deficit 29:01- Should residents be paying extra for things they expect in normal life? 33:0-1 - The simplest lever providers aren’t pulling… and why it’s directly impacting financial performance 37:28 - There’s $4.5 billion sitting unused in home care… so why isn’t it reaching the people who need it? 40:55 - Where 30% of every home care dollar actually goes… and why that’s becoming unsustainable 52:18 - Are we quietly cutting funding while calling it “reform”? 56:55 - The number the sector actually needs to be investible… and why we’re nowhere near it 58:48 - if you could change three ithings in the next 12 months to shift this trajectory what would they be 1:02:026 - What small providers need to understand right now if they want to survive what’s coming

    1h 9m
  6. A Good Death: Are We Designing Aged Care for Living, but Not for Dying?

    MAR 30

    A Good Death: Are We Designing Aged Care for Living, but Not for Dying?

    We design aged care services around living well. But what about leaving well? Death is inevitable in residential care, and yet most organisations have no clear framework for what a good death looks like. No structured training, no consistent rituals, and in some cases, no funding for the final day of care. So today Dane is turning the mic on Rose, to sit down and unpack the policies we don’t have, the conversations we avoid, and the leadership decisions that shape the final experience of life in care. Key moments: 0:00 - What shocked Rose when she first starting working in aged care and designing death 4:22 - What Rose learnt from experienced clinical staff about what actually shapes a good death 5:35 - Why aren’t we recording something as simple as the preferred place of death? 7:29 - Are we training our staff enough about how to design a good death? 9:34 - What are we doing that might be well-meaning but affecting the lives of residents and staff? 13:16 - Is there a right way to handle death in a residential facility? 16:02 - When we hide death, what is the cost? 17:04 - What happens when funding doesn’t recognise the final day of care? 19:23 - Switzerland is doing things differently: what designing for both living and leaving looks like 22:43 - The beautiful moment Rose got to share with her grandmother thanks to a nurse 26:08 - What leaders should be doing now

    30 min
  7. “Australia’s Health Care System is on it’s Knees” - Why We Need to Start Talking About Money in Aged Care ft Charles Moore

    MAR 23

    “Australia’s Health Care System is on it’s Knees” - Why We Need to Start Talking About Money in Aged Care ft Charles Moore

    What happens when an industry built on care is uncomfortable talking about money? Aged care is framed as something that should exist outside the language of profit, investment and commercial thinking. But without those things, it becomes very difficult to build the homes, services and communities the next generation of older Australians will rely on. And that time is coming quickly. In this episode, Rose and Dane sit down with Charles Moore, CEO of BaptistCare, to talk about why the sector may need to rethink the way it talks about capital, growth and commercial sustainability. Key moments: 0:00 - The tension between profit and purpose in aged care, and why the sector needs to get more comfortable with being commercial 4:53 - Why attracting capital into aged care might be one of the biggest challenges facing the sector 10:20 - The role retirement living could play in solving the bed shortage 12:54 -  What “integrated care” actually looks like inside BaptistCare’s model 15:56 - The things Charles believes need to change if the system is going to work long-term 20:32 -  What Charles learned working on the Sydney Olympic Park development and how that thinking has shaped BaptistCare 25:26 - Why attracting younger people into the workforce is becoming more urgent 26:20 - BaptistCare’s clustering strategy and how it changes the way services are delivered 33:08 - The thinking behind the recent merger and what it enables them to do 40:52 - Why Charles believes this might actually be the best time to invest in aged care 44:11 - The story behind Hope Street and the role projects like this can play in communities 50:17 - How housing affordability is shaping the future of aged care 55:19 - What Charles hopes the sector could look like in the years ahead

    1 hr
  8. Funding Aged Care Homes in Regional Australia: Taking Initiatives into your own hands with Chris from Whiddon Aged Care

    MAR 16

    Funding Aged Care Homes in Regional Australia: Taking Initiatives into your own hands with Chris from Whiddon Aged Care

    Australia has an Aged Care Home problem. And it’s already creating pressure in regional communities. Current projections suggest that 80,000 additional beds will be needed over the next decade. They’re currently being built at less than 1,000 beds a year … And the gap is starting to have a very real effect on the industry.  We’re already seeing it play out in service viability, workforce strain and further limiting options for regional families. In this episode, Dane and Rose sit down with Chris Mamarelis from Whiddon Aged Care to talk through what’s happening in regional Australia. From why funding and viability remain the biggest constraints, to how providers are being forced to take matters into their own hands when policy makers just aren’t keeping up. Key moments: 0:00 - Why regional aged care is where the system is breaking first 3:47 - “The problem is viability”: Why services are closing even though demand exists 5:18 - How capital grants are being used to make otherwise unviable regional projects possible 7:41 - How Triple M and regional loadings work and why they’re still falling short 9:18 - Why very small regional homes are becoming no longer viable 13:06 - What Whiddon actually means by relationship based care (with real examples) 18:44 - Why COVID has made people afraid to enter residential care again 21:46 - Recruiting in regional towns vs metro including timelines, agency use + cost 23:38 - The real cost of skilled migration and what Whiddon does differently for its staff 31:12 - Why Whiddon stopped waiting for government and launched a collaborative health model 39:52 - Why Australia is massively underbuilding aged care beds despite clear demand 44:41 - Standalone community providers are being forced to merge or exit 1:00:02 - Chris’s message to the government about funding

    1h 2m
See All (24)

Trailer

About

Time Well Spent is a podcast exploring aged care, the NDIS, and health — through candid conversations with executives and thought leaders shaping the industry. Hosted by Dane Mitchell (Optimum Allied Health) and Rose Plater (Paynters), the show is built on authentic conversations. Each 40-60 minute episode asks bold, sometimes controversial, questions about reform, workforce, finance, design, and innovation — opening space for leaders to tell us what they really think about the industry and its future.

Information

  • Creator
    Dane Mitchell and Rose Plater
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    24
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Time Well Spent
  • Show Website
    Time Well Spent

You Might Also Like