Photo of a woman asleep in a hospital bed

Waking residents for showers is a form of abuse, not care

In some aged care facilities, residents are being forcibly woken as early as 5 AM to be showered – solely for the convenience of staff.

Published: 16 March 2025

This practice is not just unethical; it is a form of institutional abuse that violates the dignity and autonomy of some of the most vulnerable members of society, according to this HelloCare article.

The justification for this practice varies. Some facilities have long-standing routines that mandate residents be showered before breakfast, while others enforce it to lighten the workload for morning shift staff.

Regardless of the reasoning, the outcome is the same: residents are deprived of their right to sleep and their basic autonomy is disregarded.