An aged care home on Sydney's northern beaches is at risk of permanently losing its government accreditation after one of its workers was secretly filmed allegedly abusing an elderly dementia patient.

Key points: An 82-year-old client was allegedly assaulted at Bupa Seaforth last month

An 82-year-old client was allegedly assaulted at Bupa Seaforth last month The facility lost six months' government funding after the incident

The facility lost six months' government funding after the incident It has written to families saying it won't take new clients until "problems" are fixed

Prakash Paudyal, 35, was arrested and charged with common assault offences last month after David Nabulsi's family set up a hidden camera in his room at the Bupa facility in Seaforth.

Disturbing footage allegedly shows Mr Paudyal repeatedly hitting the 82-year-old with a shoe and, in a separate incident, dragging him onto the floor while trying to remove his clothes.

Mr Paudyal, who has been sacked by his employer, is due to face Manly court next week after a magistrate granted him conditional bail in September.

The Federal Department of Health has announced sanctions against Bupa's aged care home at Seaforth following the allegations and after it recently failed to meet Commonwealth accreditation standards.

The facility has lost its government funding for the next six months and decided not to accept new patients so it can "focus on fixing the problems for current residents", according to a letter written to the families of residents.

Ayda Celine doubts sanctions against a Sydney aged care home where her father was allegedly abused will lead to any permanent change. ( ABC News )

The letter, obtained exclusively by the ABC, requires Bupa Seaforth to appoint an independent adviser to focus on clinical care, and an independent administrator to look at any governance issues.

Bupa Seaforth will also have to fork out money to provide further staff training and "address the gaps in learning" identified by the department.

Meeting with families 'useless'

Mr Nabulsi's daughter, Ayda Celine, was among about 40 family members who met with management and government officials in Seaforth last week.

"The meeting was useless to be honest — the officials were dodging a lot of our questions and couldn't really explain how standards would improve, so I ended up actually walking out," she told the ABC.

"It actually sounded like the officials were blaming the families for not supporting the care staff — but in reality, we are there every day, doing their job, so they were taking no accountability for what was happening in that facility at all."

Ms Celine says Bupa officials told the families that nine days prior to her father allegedly being attacked, the Seaforth branch had passed the accreditation standards.

"It makes me think that maybe the checks need to be stricter or more thorough, because it makes no sense that the facility passed the test and then just over a week later my father was filmed being hit," she said.

"When we asked about staff-to-patient ratios, we were told that they [Bupa] didn't have one — and they couldn't say how they would make sure the staff are properly trained."

Prakash Paudyal, a father of one, has been granted conditional bail after he being charged with abusing an elderly patient. ( Source: Suren's Photography )

Ms Celine said she doubts the sanctions will lead to any long-term change and, after visiting her father at Bupa Seaforth earlier on Tuesday, does not believe there have been improvements.

"He was just shoved in the courtyard in direct sunlight, wearing woollen clothing, with no sunscreen or a hat. When I went to get him up, he fainted because he was dehydrated," she said.

"The nursing homes just get their tick of approval, then all care goes out the window."

In a statement, a Bupa spokesperson said the company "apologises unreservedly to the residents of our Seaforth home" and "knows that giving our residents, their families, and our employees a greater voice in shaping aged care for the better is critical".

Bupa Seaforth is conducting its own internal review and has hired Victoria's former health services commissioner, Beth Wilson, to work with residents and their families over the next six months.