The department is seeking feedback on a Serious Incident Response Scheme (SIRS) for residential aged care.
This consultation aims to assist in the development of the finer details of a SIRS and inform further advice to government on structure and operation, legislative requirements and resourcing implications.
Submissions are now open on the department’s Consultation Hub. Feedback on the consultation paper should be submitted by 4 October 2019.
Read more:
In this issue:
• Provide your feedback on the future of aged care system navigation
• Inside Ageing’s Future of Ageing Awards 2019
Residential Care:
• Residential Aged Care Funding Reform update
• MDFA Survey – Help evaluate the impact of digital training tools for Residential Aged Care Facilities
Read more:
In this edition:
• Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission Regulatory Bulletin – Reconsideration of regulatory decisions
• Aged Care Workforce Industry Council commences work
• Victorian Government is committed to conduct food audit in hospital and aged care centres
• Have your say on proposed alternative models for allocating residential aged care places
• Deeming rates and base interest rate (BIR) changes
Read more:
The Aged Care Forms Taskforce webinar was a huge success, with a large number of aged care stakeholders logging in to hear about the new and simplified aged care means assessment forms.
There were plenty of questions throughout the session, with questions and answers (Q&A) emailed to registered participants.
If you did not register to attend on 24 June, the webinar, supporting documents, and the Q&A are publicly available on the CCH Learning website.
Read more:
Webinar Q&A ‘Navigating the new Aged Care Means Assessment’
CCH Learning website – Navigating the New Aged Care Means Assessment Forms
The media recently reported that the first person in Victoria has passed away using the voluntary assisted dying (VAD) scheme that came into effect on 19 June 2019. Other states are also looking at introducing similar laws, so the issue is likely to stay on the agenda for some time.
How does the scheme impact retirement village operators?
With strict eligibility requirements to access the scheme and only specially trained medical practitioners able to prescribe and administer the VAD substance, the direct impact of the scheme on retirement village operators is limited at this stage.
Retirement village operators may have residents in their villages who are considering using the scheme. For this reason, operators will need to consider how staff should respond to a request, and what they will do if residents do access the scheme.
Read more:
Voluntary Assisted Dying: What do Retirement Village Operators need to know?
A recent interview with Janet Anderson – Commissioner, Aged Care Quality & Safety Commission by HelloCare.
Watch here:
Interview Janet Anderson – Commissioner, Aged Care Quality & Safety Commission
So the Department may have finally notified us last week that the BIR rate had changed and was to be backdated… but they got it wrong!
As per their previous notice, the BIR was to be backdated to 1 July, now they are saying this should have only been 1 August.
The BIR should be:
• 3.75% for the period 1 July 2019 to 31 July 2019, and
• 3.0% from 1 August 2019.
We have a very minor update available due to the Department’s mistake with the change of the BIR rate, and version 5.7.08210.0 has now been pushed out to your server to be run when you are ready.
Read more:
Schedule of Fees and Charges for Residential and Home Care From 1 July 2019 (.pdf)
Schedule of Fees and Charges for Pre 1 July 2014 Residents from 1 July 2019 (.pdf)
Three Hearings have been announced for Melbourne during September and October.
Melbourne Hearing 1 – Younger people in residential aged care
Melbourne hearing 1 will inquire into younger people in residential aged care, with a focus on impact, drivers and appropriateness of allocation policy as well as how to best support young people wishing to leave residential aged care.
• Date: 9 – 11 September and 13 September 2019
• Location: Ceremonial Court room, Level 3, County Court, 250 William Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
• Time: 9:30am local time
Melbourne Hearing 2 – Diversity in aged care
Melbourne hearing 2 will inquire into diversity in aged care, including culturally and linguistically diverse people, LGBTI groups, Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people, care leavers, veterans, and the homeless or those at risk of homelessness.
• Date: 7 – 9 October and 11 October 2019
• Location: Commonwealth Law Courts Building, 305 William St, Melbourne VIC 3000
• Time: 9:30am local time
Melbourne Hearing 3 – Aged care workforce
Melbourne hearing 3 will inquire into the aged care workforce, with a focus on how to enhance capacity and how to make the aged care sector a more attractive and rewarding place to work.
• Date: 14 – 18 October 2019
• Location: Commonwealth Law Courts Building, 305 William St, Melbourne VIC 3000
• Time: 9:30am local time
Read more:
Australian Healthcare Associates (AHA) has been engaged by the department to evaluate the Aged Care System Navigator Measure (the Measure).
AHA has developed a discussion paper informed by stakeholder consultations and existing system navigator models. The paper outlines proposed design principles, components and considerations for implementation of aged care system navigator models in Australia.
Feedback on the discussion paper will be used in the evaluation of the Measure and contribute to the aged care system navigation policy direction.
Read more:
Provide your feedback on the future of aged care system navigation
Evaluation of the Aged Care System Navigator Measure Discussion Paper (.pdf)
As some of you may have realised the Department made changes to the BIR rate…but forgot to notify everyone they had updated the rate and documents and backdated this rate to 1 July.
Finally, on the 13th of August, they decided to inform us of this officially.
Luckily one of our eagle-eyed Manad Plus users noticed this change and let us know. We released a mini-release note on Friday 9th August with the changes and then made the version available to be installed first thing on Monday 12th. If you are running v5.7.08090.0 or higher then you have the latest BIR rate.
So this is old news now but here is the official Department update on the rate change.
Read more:
Deeming rates and base rate (BIR) changes
Schedule of Fees and Charges for Residential and Home Care From 1 July 2019 (.pdf)
Schedule of Fees and Charges for Pre 1 July 2014 Residents from 1 July 2019 (.pdf)
Management Advantage Pty Ltd
Suite 2, 430 Rae Street
Fitzroy North
VIC 3068
1300 62 62 32
info@manad.com.au