About the program
Quality indicators measure important aspects of aged care services. This helps to improve the quality of aged care services provided to older people.
Residential aged care providers currently report on 11 quality indicators, with 3 staffing quality indicators to be added from 1 April 2025.
We are also developing quality indicators to apply to aged care providers delivering services under the Support at Home program.
We consulted extensively with the sector and aged care experts to develop the quality indicators.
Why it’s important
Reporting on the quality of care helps:
- approved providers measure, monitor, compare and improve the quality of their services
- older people find information about the quality of aged care services when making choices about their care
- government monitor the quality of aged care provided to residents, and make evidence-based policy decisions.
The QI Program addresses recommendations from the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety.
Quality indicators for residential aged care
Residential aged care providers must report on the following 11 quality indicators for each resident every 3 months:
- Pressure injuries
- Physical restraint
- Unplanned weight loss
- Falls and major injury
- Medication management
- Activities of daily living
- Incontinence care
- Hospitalisation
- Workforce
- Consumer experience
- Quality of life.
New quality indicators for staffing in 2025
From 1 April 2025 (quarter 4, 2024–25) we are introducing 3 new staffing quality indicators for:
- enrolled nursing
- allied health
- lifestyle officers.
Four of the 5 new data points come from information reported by providers in their Quarterly Financial Report. Providers will start collecting new data for the ‘recommended allied health services received’ quality indicator from 1 April 2025. Providers will report this data through the Government Provider Management System (GPMS) from 1 July 2025.
Enrolled nurses, allied health workers and lifestyle officers are an important part residential aged care. The new quality indicators make sure their valuable work is properly measured and recorded.
See how we consulted the sector on the new staffing quality indicators.
New quality indicators for Support at Home
We completed consultation on suitable quality indicators for the Support at Home Program in July 2024. Thank you to everyone who contributed.
HealthConsult ran a 12-week pilot from early October 2024 to test the proposed quality indicators. Results from the pilot will inform final recommendations for the QI Program for Support at Home.
Reporting
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) publishes QI data at national, state and territory levels, and by geographical remoteness for each quarter of reporting.
Legislation
The QI Program is governed by:
- the Aged Care Act 1997
- the Aged Care Legislation Amendment (Quality Indicator Program) Principles 2021
- Accountability Principles 2014
- Records Principles 2014.
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