ONE of Australia's biggest private aged care operators, the Japara Group, will come under federal scrutiny after a nursing home it operates was referred to police over the treatment of residents.

The Melbourne-based group, which looks after more than 2500 elderly people across four states, has snapped up almost a dozen nursing homes in recent years after owners ran foul of the nation's aged care accreditation body.

But Japara faces some of the toughest penalties seen in the industry, despite claiming it was encouraged by federal health authorities to take over the problem-plagued facilities.

Yesterday, Minister for Ageing Justine Elliot announced the federal Department of Health and Ageing had begun looking at all nursing homes connected to the Japara group and its subsidiary companies.

"If there are any problems that are identified, then appropriate action will be taken," Ms Elliot said.

The review comes after the department referred its findings on the Kirralee Aged Care Facility in Ballarat to the Victorian police.

Ninety-one of the 100 residents remain at the nursing home, after a snap visit by aged care authorities found they had been placed at "serious risk" because of a lack of proper food and water.

Some of the residents reportedly weighed less than 25kg.

A spokeswoman for the Victorian police confirmed yesterday it had received the case paperwork and would assign it for investigation.

Julie Reed, executive director of the Kirralee home, acknowledged that "we can and will do better".

But she disputed the Government's claims the residents had been put at risk, saying the problems raised by the accreditation agency centred on insufficient documentation, rather than lack of care.

"Only two months ago, the accreditation agency found that Kirralee was fully compliant with all 44 aged care outcomes," Ms Reed said.

Mrs Elliot has threatened to revoke the nursing home's approved provider status if the situation does not improve - a decision with major ramifications for Japara's operations.

Aged Care Services 27 (Kirralee), part of Japara's aged care arm, bought the nursing home 10 months ago, adding to the group's problem holdings.

It has taken over five other nursing homes hit by government sanctions between 2003 and last year.

Source: The Australian - Siobhain Ryan