Editor's note

A challenge facing the recently announced Royal Commission into quality and safety in aged care is to define “quality”. We asked readers on social media how they would want a loved one treated in residential aged care. Their responses showed people have similar views on what qualities are important: dignity, social connection, caring staff and personal autonomy. Unfortunately, some people have a bleak view of aged care, expressing the desire to die rather than live in a residential facility. As Joseph Ibrahim writes, this speaks more to the fear of losing independence, autonomy and identity in older age than it does of entering a care facility. Though fears like this are common, and should be addressed by the Royal Commission.

As the weather warms up, lots of young people will be planning to go to their favourite music festivals. But new research by Bianca Fileborn and colleagues shows young women in particular often do not feel safe at music festivals, and many have had experience of sexual harassment or even assault.

And in the competitive food market, the price of milk stirs passions like nothing else. But the federal minister of agriculture’s call for a boycott of supermarket-branded milk is misguided. He needs to read the ACCC’s report: supermarkets aren’t necessarily the bad guys here.

Sasha Petrova

Deputy Editor, Health + Medicine

Top story

Social connections help retain a sense of purpose in older age. from shutterstock.com

What is ‘quality’ in aged care? Here’s what studies (and our readers) say

Joseph Ibrahim, Monash University

The Conversation asked readers how they would want a loved one to be cared for in a residential aged care facility. What they said was similar to what surveys around the world have consistently found.

Despite the survey’s findings, it is heartening that many music festivals have taken serious steps towards stamping out sexual violence. AAP/Dave Hunt

New research shines light on sexual violence at Australian music festivals

Bianca Fileborn, UNSW; Phillip Wadds, UNSW; Stephen Tomsen, Western Sydney University

Many women do not feel safe at music festivals, citing the particular combination of big crowds and alcohol and drug intake making them particularly wary.

Calls to boycott supermarket-branded milk only put greater pressure on the dairy farmers who supply it. AAP Image/Mal Fairclough

Supermarkets are not milking dairy farmers dry: the myth that obscures the real problem

Gary Mortimer, Queensland University of Technology

Calls to boycott supermarket-branded milk are misguided; and a royal commission into treatment of dairy farmers would be money wasted.

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  • Working out what makes a good community where young children can thrive

    Sharon Goldfeld, University of Melbourne; Billie Giles-Corti, RMIT University; Geoffrey Woolcock, University of Southern Queensland; Hannah Badland, RMIT University; Ilan Katz, UNSW; Karen Villanueva, Murdoch Children's Research Institute; Robert Tanton, University of Canberra; Sally Brinkman, Telethon Kids Institute

    Research has started to identify the key factors in creating communities that promote good early childhood development.

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