Excellence Awards - aged care 2026

Individual Leadership

Ricah Noorzaye
Amy White
Glen Williams

Team Excellence

Embedding Specialist Palliative Care Nursing in Aged Care Residential In-Reach Team - Monash Health
Saying Goodbye Team - Bupa Aged Care Australia
Staying in Place Pingelly

Read the media release

Read about the finalists in the other 2026 HESTA Excellence Awards categories

allied health | community services | disability services

Individual Leadership

Ricah Noorzaye

The Brotherhood of St. Laurence
Frankston VIC

Ricah is recognised for her exceptional leadership of Banksia Cottage Respite, a six-bed, dementia-specific service operated by the Brotherhood of St. Laurence in Frankston, Victoria.

The service provides day and overnight care for individuals with complex cognitive impairment and high behavioural support needs – the presentations most residential and respite services decline. Ricah redesigned Banksia Cottage's entire model of care, integrating individualised care mapping, consistent behavioural routines, and a home-like environment design to improve health outcomes. Her path from Personal Care Attendant to service manager, shaped by growing up in Afghanistan during a period of conflict, grounds her leadership in resilience, dignity, and the conviction that every person deserves to feel safe and seen.

Ricah’s leadership and mentorship has produced extraordinary results: a highly engaged workforce and genuine person-centred care that delivers improved health outcomes.

Amy White

ACH Group
Mile End SA

Amy is recognised for her transformative leadership as Operations Manager of ACH Group's Central Production Kitchen, where she oversees a team of 50 delivering 12,000+ meals each week to older South Australians across six residential care homes.

Since joining ACH Group in 2023, Amy has enhanced the mealtime experience for residents, standardising equipment and improving training to preserve taste, texture and nutritional integrity from kitchen to table. Her initiatives include picture menus developed with the University of South Australia, guided kitchen tours that build resident confidence in food quality, and an outreach program placing chefs directly in homes.

Under Amy’s leadership, compliments about the food have increased, clinical outcomes have improved, and staff engagement and retention have risen markedly.

Glen Williams

OneCare Limited
Hobart TAS

Glen is recognised for his leadership on clinical governance at OneCare, shifting the organisation from a compliance-focused model to a proactive, outcomes-driven system that improves care for more than 2000 older Tasmanians.

A registered nurse with over 20 years’ experience and OneCare’s Chief Clinical Officer, Glen developed the "Last 1000 Days" framework – a person-centred model that integrates frailty identification, reablement, palliative and end-of-life care into a single, cohesive approach to the final years of life. Implemented across all five OneCare residential homes and into home and community services, the framework is supported by real-time clinical dashboards, standardised assessment pathways and structured workforce education.

The results are compelling: OneCare is outperforming state and national benchmarks across hospital transfer rates, pressure injury rates and quality of life outcomes for residents, with workforce turnover below national averages.

Team Excellence

Embedding Specialist Palliative Care Nursing in Aged Care Residential In-Reach Team

Monash Health
Clayton VIC

The healthcare team is recognised for pioneering an innovative model of care that embeds specialist palliative care expertise directly within hospital residential in-reach services.

Co designed with a wide range of partners, including aged care staff, hospital and community palliative care clinicians, in reach and hospital in the home teams, general practitioners, researchers and consumers, the team developed clear referral pathways giving aged care facilities a single, easy point of contact for palliative care advice and support. This reduced delays, simplified communication and allowed residents to be assessed quickly.

Over eight months, the team delivered 317 clinical interactions to 172 residents across 76 facilities, with around 65% reviewed within 24 hours of referral. Residents received faster, more coordinated and compassionate care, with fewer avoidable hospital presentations. Due to its success, the service has received permanent funding and offers a scalable approach for wider adoption.

Saying Goodbye Team

Bupa Aged Care Australia
Sydney NSW

Bupa Aged Care Australia's Saying Goodbye Team is recognised for embedding a consistent, person-centred approach to palliative, end-of-life and after-death care across Bupa’s 57 aged care homes, supporting more than 5,500 residents and their families across Australia.

The team partnered with a diverse working group spanning quality, operations, lifestyle, carer and clinical teams, as well as families and residents, to co-design a Palliative and End of Life Care Framework grounded in evidence and best practice. Their aim was to embed quality practices, ensuring Saying Goodbye became a shared, compassionate approach upholding dignity, connection and kindness.

The team’s work has resulted in earlier identification of palliative care needs, improved care planning and bereavement support. As well as planning and early identification, it supports residents approaching their final days, families and loved ones, fellow residents, and the team who care for them.

Staying in Place Pingelly

Pingelly Community Resource Centre Inc
Pingelly WA

Staying in Place Pingelly pioneered a community-led aged care model that enables older people in rural and regional communities to age safely and independently in their own homes.

Recognising that staying connected to place is critical for wellbeing, the team redesigned traditional aged care through a home support service, a “Virtual Village” network, and a local workforce model. Key initiatives include an Aged Care Equipment Shed that repurposes donated equipment, a monthly social hub that promotes connection and mental wellbeing, and smart home technology that helps people with cognitive decline remain safe at home for longer. By focusing on community-driven, place-based solutions, the model supports older people to maintain independence, dignity and social connections.

Since 2023, the approach has been replicated in more than 60 rural and regional communities across Australia, demonstrating its effectiveness in improving health and wellbeing outcomes.