World Class Quality Assurance System In Aged Care
The Australian Government's vision for aged care is a world class system that provides high quality, affordable and accessible services to meet the individual needs of older Australians.
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11 August 2004 | JB153/04 |
World Class Quality Assurance System In Aged Care
Since coming to office in 1996 the Australian Government's vision for aged care has been for a world class system that provides high quality, affordable and accessible services to meet the individual needs of older Australians.
A key part of delivering on this vision was the introduction of the first national quality assurance program that legislated standards of care as part of our 1997 aged care reforms. Prior to this there were no national legislated standards of care, despite reports to the former Labor Government showing aged care homes delivering poor care.
The Australian Government's reforms included:
- requiring that all aged care homes have an internal complaints mechanism;
- establishing the Complaints Resolution Scheme;
- establishing an independent Aged Care Complaints Commissioner to oversee the Complaints Resolution Scheme and resolve complaints, particularly through negotiation and mediation;
- establishing the Aged Care Standards and Accreditation Agency, to audit, monitor and assess aged care homes against the 44 accreditation standards. The Agency also conducts reviews and unannounced spot checks of homes.
- introducing new building certification standards to ensure aged care homes meet high quality standards for accommodation.
Since accreditation began the Agency and the Department have conducted more than 18,000 visits to aged care homes, including more than 4,000 spot checks, to monitor quality and care standards for residents.
These reforms have delivered a world class quality assurance system. In his independent Review of Pricing Arrangements in Residential Aged Care, Professor Warren Hogan found that: "Submissions and evidence presented at consultations indicate broad support for accreditation. There is general acknowledgment that standards of care and accommodation across the industry have been improved substantially by accreditation."
After two rounds of accreditation, more than 90 per cent of aged care homes have received full accreditation, and the Agency and Department continue to work with those that do not, to ensure they improve. There are currently 2949 accredited aged care services.
Directors of Nursing in the aged care homes I have visited across Australia have told me that accreditation is the best thing that has happened to the aged care sector. Accreditation and striving for continuous improvement is now increasingly part of the culture of delivering high quality aged care in Australia.
Just as aged care providers must strive for continuous improvement in the quality of care they deliver to older Australians, the Agency is also striving for continuous improvement in its operations, by going through its own accreditation process and by working with the aged care sector, including providers and nurses, through Industry Liaison Groups in each State and Territory.
To further enhance the quality assurance program the Australian Government delivered an extra $36.3 million to the Agency in the 2004 Budget.
Media contact: Rachael Thompson 02 6277 7280 or 0417 265 289