Month: November 2022

News about the reforms:

• Consultation closing soon: Revised Aged Care Quality Standards
• Webinar: Reporting under the SIRS for home services
• Permanent closure of the AN-ACC Funding Helpdesk
• 24/7 registered nurse supplement and AN-ACC subsidy increase
• Webinar: Quarterly Financial Report – Quarter 2
• Monthly Care Statements: Pilot Program update

Other news:

• Providers: Update your profile on My Aged Care with supporting information
• World Antimicrobial Awareness Week 2022
• Webinar: Art and dance therapy programs with older adults
• New Multi-Purpose Services in NSW, SA and Qld
• Webinar: Improving respite care for people with dementia and their carers grant opportunity

For residential care providers:

• Changes to social leave claiming
• Residential aged care facilities to supply continence products

For home care providers:

• HCP Program Assurance Community of Practice: Live chat session
• Updated Home Care Package pricing report
• Expanded access to urgent GEAT for Home Care Package recipients
• Webinar: Reforming in-home aged care update

Read more:

Your Aged Care Update newsletter – Issue #2022/27 (.pdf)

A list of new and updated resources – including apps, audio and video resources and other publications – about aged care.

Read more:

Star Ratings summary report (.pdf)

ACFI Monitoring report – August 2022 (.pdf)

Understanding fees for aged care homes (.pdf)

Understanding fees for residential respite care (.pdf)

Understanding fees for home care (.pdf)

Information about changes to in-home aged care – Easy Read (.pdf)

Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission new and updated resources.

Read more:

Serious Incident Response Scheme (SIRS) Notice Manual form (.docx)

SIRS Final report on reportable incident form (.docx)

SIRS Notice of significant new information form (.docx)

SIRS – Notice of additional information form (Priority 1) (.docx)

SIRS – Notice of additional information form (Priority 2) (.docx)

On 4 November 2022, the Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission (Commission) published its decision that it was satisfied that a 15% interim increase in minimum wages for direct aged care workers covered by the Aged Care Award 2010, Nurses Award 2020 and Social, Community, Home Care and Disability Services Industry Award 2010 (Awards) is ‘plainly justified by work value reasons.’

This decision dealt with three applications made under section 158 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (Fair Work Act) to vary the Awards to increase the minimum wages of aged care sector workers by 25%.

Under the Fair Work Act the Commission may make a variation to achieve modern award objectives if it is satisfied that the variation is justified by work value reasons. Work value reasons are reasons justifying the amount that employees should be paid for doing a certain kind of work.

To determine whether an increase is justified, the Commission considered in detail the nature of the work in the aged care sector, the skills and responsibility involved and the conditions under which the work is done. Based on expert evidence, the Commission preliminarily accepted a number of propositions about the influence of gender biased assumptions on the valuation of work in the aged care sector. The Commission also concluded that the work undertaken by RNs, ENs and Certificate III PCWs in residential aged care had changed significantly in the past two decades, which justified an increase in minimum wages for these classifications.

You can read the full decision here.

Read more:

Aged Care sector pay increase – what providers need to know

Fair Work Decision (.pdf)

From 1 July 2023, approved residential aged care services must have a registered nurse (RN) onsite and on duty 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and report monthly on all periods of 30 minutes or more where an RN is not onsite and on duty.

Exemptions

Residential aged care services with 30 or less approved beds in Modified Monash Model (MMM) 5–7 locations are eligible for a one-off 12-month exemption from the 24/7 RN requirement. Services must agree to the exemption and sign a statement that they have suitable care arrangements in place for when they do not have an RN onsite. Services can choose to opt out of the exemption.

Funding supplement

Residential aged care services with 60 residents or less (based on occupied beds) are eligible for a funding supplement to employ extra RNs to deliver 24/7 RN care.

Services with more than 60 residents do not receive the supplement, because their existing AN-ACC funding is sufficient to provide for 24/7 RN care.

Read more:

Care minutes and 24/7 nursing requirements guide (.pdf)

24/7 registered nurse supplement for residential aged care

As the Department of Health & Aged Care continue to release further details and documents on AN-ACC we will continue to update these here for you.

They have released updated and/or new guides on:

1. What are care minutes? (.pdf)

2. Care minutes and 24/7 nursing requirements guide (.pdf)

Upcoming Webinar:

• Australian National Aged Care Classification (AN-ACC) update: Thursday, Nov 17 2022 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM

Services Australia’s quarterly review of residential fees was run on Friday 28 October 2022.

This process is used to update care recipients’ fees to align with any changes in their financial circumstances and make corresponding adjustments to subsidy payments for providers.

This quarterly review has considered both:

• the routine indexation of aged care fees on 20 September 2022
• the introduction of the Australian National Aged Care Classification (AN-ACC) care funding model on 1 October 2022.

Read more:

Important update: Residential aged care quarterly review of fees

As the Department of Health & Aged Care continue to release further details and documents on AN-ACC we will continue to update these here for you.

They have released updated and/or new guides on:

1. Are AN-ACC assessments high quality? (.pdf)
2. How allied health care is supported under AN-ACC (.pdf)
3. Why is reporting care staffing minutes important? (.pdf)
4. Quality assurance of the Australian National Aged Care Classification (AN-ACC) – Final report (.pdf)

Upcoming Webinar:

• Australian National Aged Care Classification (AN-ACC) update: Thursday, Nov 17 2022 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM

News about the reforms:

• Financial Report on the Australian Aged Care Sector 2020-21
• Webinar for workers: Code of Conduct for Aged Care
• Webinar: Updates on AN-ACC, care minutes and 24/7 nursing
• Webinar: The Future of Aged Care – Leading the Transformation
• Reminder: Star Ratings webinar
• Quality and Safety Commission review: Public submissions now open

Other news:

• Grant Forecast Opportunity: Improving respite care for people with dementia and their carers
• Webinar: Dementia: An introduction
• Information sessions: Voluntary assisted dying in Queensland
• Webinar: Supporting Older People from CALD Backgrounds with a Hearing Impairment
• Webinar recording: Aged care Australian Apprenticeships (Traineeships)
• National Suicide Prevention for Seniors Program

For home care providers:

• Update on national provider of CHSP GEAT services
• Vision Australia webinar: Vision loss tips for CHSP providers

Read more:

Your Aged Care Update newsletter – Issue #2022/26 (.pdf)

Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission new and updated resources.

Read more:

Serious Incident Response Scheme Guidelines for providers of home services (.pdf)

Code of Conduct for Aged Care: Guidance for aged care workers and governing persons (.pdf)

Effective incident management system checklist (.pdf)

24 October 2022 – Letter to providers regarding adverse weather events (.pdf)