Nutrition in Home Care: The Compliance Risk Most Providers Miss

Malnutrition is a silent risk in Home Care.

Studies show that up to 50% of older Australians living at home are malnourished or at risk. It’s a problem that doesn’t always show up immediately — but when it does, the consequences are serious: higher rates of falls, hospitalisations, and premature loss of independence.

Despite this, nutrition is still one of the most overlooked areas in client care plans. Not because providers don’t care — but because senior managers face a very real dilemma.

The Management Dilemma

When I speak with senior leaders of Home Care Providers, I hear the same concerns:

• “What if identifying the problem creates new challenges we’re not staffed to manage?”

• “Do we stay with the status quo, or move early to get ahead of inevitable future regulation?”

These are valid questions.

Care management roles are funded under a fixed fee, which means any additional administration can eat into margins. Dietitians are difficult to source. And sourcing nutrition support products is often slow, difficult, and full of paperwork.

For many providers, nutrition ends up in the ‘too hard basket’ — something acknowledged as important but seen as complex, resource-heavy, and difficult to manage.

The Risk in Doing Nothing

But here’s the challenge: ignoring nutrition doesn’t make the risk go away.

• It leaves clients more vulnerable to health deterioration.

• It increases provider exposure at audits, where assessed needs must be documented in the care plan.

• It creates reputational harm — families and clients increasingly expect proactive, evidence-based care.

Nutrition is already recognised as a clinical support service under the Support at Home reforms:

“Nutrition and dietetics services – provision of assessment, prescription, and monitoring of nutrition interventions.”

— Support at Home Service List, My Aged Care (2025)

It is already an obligation in Home Care — but the procedures for how providers must assess and monitor nutrition risk are not yet prescribed. That gap won’t last forever.

A Smarter Way Forward

The good news is that there’s a way to address nutrition that doesn’t create new burdens for providers. At Eat Well Health, we’ve built a model that allows you to do the right thing for clients while protecting your organisation’s resources.

Here’s how it works:

1. Screening

• Simple, validated online screening tool (MNA-SF).

• Clients can complete independently, or care staff can integrate checks seamlessly into visits.

• Results flow directly into a secure online portal — paperless, efficient, audit-ready.

2. Dietitian Support

• If flagged, your in-house dietitians can provide input, with our telehealth Accredited Practising Dietitians available to extend your team’s capacity whenever needed.

• External dietitians and GPs can also register on our system to upload prescriptions directly — reducing paperwork and ensuring their recommendations are actioned quickly.

• In every case, the clinical role of the dietitian is front and centre.

3. Product Supply

• Dietitian issues prescription for clinically designed senior nutrition products.

• Approval requests are sent electronically to your staff.

• We manage supply, invoicing, and delivery direct to clients — eliminating provider admin.

4. Monitoring & Compliance

• Clients are monitored electronically with regular follow-up.

• High-risk cases automatically flagged to care staff.

• Full audit-ready communication trail available at any time.

The Outcome

With this model, providers can:

• Meet compliance expectations without adding admin costs.

• Scale seamlessly — whether you have 50 clients or 50,000.

• Deliver stronger outcomes for clients and families.

• Protect their reputation as leaders in quality care.

And for dietitians, our system removes friction and administration, allowing them to focus on clinical care rather than chasing paperwork or supply logistics.

Leading, Not Following

Nutrition in Home Care is no longer optional. It is already a compliance obligation — providers are required to consider nutrition as part of each client’s care plan.

What is missing today are the prescribed procedures for how providers must assess and monitor nutrition risk. That gap won’t last forever. The introduction of the new Meal obligation is only the start — a clear signal that nutrition will be more tightly regulated in the future.

The real question is: do you wait until the procedures are mandated, or do you lead now?

Providers who act early will not only improve client outcomes — they’ll also demonstrate leadership, sustainability, and compliance readiness.

👉 At Eat Well Health, we provide Home Care Providers with a complete, paperless, dietitian-led model for nutrition screening, support, and reporting — at no cost to the provider when we supply the nutrition products.

If you’d like to learn more — whether as a provider looking for efficiency, or as a dietitian wanting smoother systems for your clients. Email me direct at andrew@eatwellhealth.com.au or schedule a call.

Andrew Martin
Founder, Eat Well Health Pty Ltd