The Aged Care Sector Committee Diversity Sub-group is developing an action plan to address the specific barriers and challenges faced by older people from Culturally and Linguistically
Diverse groups when accessing aged care.
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Have your say – Culturally and Linguistically Diverse action plan
Media Release: 16 February 2018
Protecting senior Australians in residential aged care from the threat of antibiotic resistant bacteria is the aim of two major research projects announced by the Turnbull Government today.
The rise of so-called “superbug” infections is a challenge for health care professionals, sometimes leaving them with limited or no available treatment options and is an increasing problem worldwide.
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DoH has released a new edition of its newsletter ‘Information for Aged Care Providers’.
• Home Care: New provider video – support plan review requests
• Residential Care: Register on nbn’s Medical Alarm Register
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Posted 12/02/2018 by Alex Grove
The quality of residential aged care services (nursing homes) featured in the news again in 2017. Failures of care identified at the Oakden Older Persons Mental Health Service in Adelaide led the Australian Government to commission an independent review of aged care quality regulation known as the Carnell review.
Against this background, the Government has announced two changes to quality and compliance visits made to nursing homes by assessors from the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency (the Quality Agency). The first change is a result of a 2015–16 Budget measure to expand cost recovery arrangements for the Quality Agency, and the second is a direct response to a recommendation of the Carnell review.
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A public consultation on the Aged Care Workforce Strategy is now open on the Consultation Hub.
The Minister for Aged Care, the Hon Ken Wyatt AM, MP announced an expert taskforce, led by Professor John Pollaers, to develop a wide-ranging workforce strategy for the aged care industry for growing and sustaining the workforce and providing aged care services and support for older people, to meet their care needs in a variety of settings across Australia.
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Seeking your views – the Aged Care Workforce Strategy
Consultation Hub – Aged Care Workforce Strategy
New aged care workforce taskforce to focus on safety and quality
Media Release: 9 February 2018
The Minister for Aged Care, Ken Wyatt AM, has today announced the re-appointment of Andrea Coote as Chair of the Aged Care Quality Advisory Council, for a three-year term.
“The Aged Care Quality Advisory Council provides valuable advice about the operations and functions of the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency including promoting continuous improvement and compliance with quality standards,” Minister Wyatt said.
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Council Chair Continues to Ensure Safe, Quality Aged Care (.pdf)
On 30 January 2018, the Department of Health released a draft single set of quality standards.
We have started to look at these and will begin planning to update Manad Plus where required so you will be ready to use these new standards.
The draft Aged Care Quality Standards will apply to Commonwealth aged care services. The draft standards have been structured so that aged care providers will only have to meet those standards that are relevant to the type of care and services they provide and the environment in which services are delivered.
Subject to agreement by the Government, the Standards are expected to be implemented from 1 July 2018. A 12-month transition period will apply, meaning that assessment against the new Standards will commence from 1 July 2019.
This single set of standards, developed as part of the Single Quality Framework, will replace the current four sets of aged care standards:
• Accreditation Standards for residential care and short-term restorative care delivered in a residential setting
• Home Care Standards for home care, short-term restorative care delivered in a home setting, and care delivered under the Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP)
• National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Aged Care Program Quality Framework Standards for care delivered under the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Aged Care Program (NATSIFACP)
• Transition Care Standards for flexible care providers delivering transition care.
The draft Aged Care Quality Standards consists of eight standards. These standards are:
• Standard 1 – Consumer dignity and choice
• Standard 2 – Ongoing assessment and planning with consumers
• Standard 3 – Personal care and clinical care
• Standard 4 – Services and supports for daily living
• Standard 5 – Organisation’s service environment
• Standard 6 – Feedback and complaints
• Standard 7 – Human resources
• Standard 8 – Organisational governance.
Each of the eight draft standards includes:
• a statement of outcome for the consumer
• a statement of expectation for the organisation
• organisational requirements to demonstrate that the standard has been met.
Read more:
Draft Aged Care Quality Standards (.pdf)
Draft application of draft Aged Care Quality Standards (.pdf)
DoH has released a new edition of its newsletter ‘Information for Aged Care Providers’.
In this issue:
• Webinar: updates on My Aged Care operations and Quality Reform – draft Aged Care Quality Standards – 14 February 2018
• New My Aged Care support materials for providers and health professionals
• Caring for Indigenous Australians in residential aged care: new video
Residential Care:
• Help consumers by using the correct accommodation costs terms in agreements
• Residential Utilisation and Classification Study (RUCS) update
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We have been working with the aged care sector to develop the draft Aged Care Quality Standards.
A single set of quality standards is a key deliverable of the Single Aged Care Quality Framework. The Aged Care Quality Standards will apply to all aged care services and will replace the current four sets of aged care standards. The Standards have been structured so that organisations will only have to meet the Standards that are relevant to them.
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The department has developed a short video on how to request a support plan review for a client through the My Aged Care provider portal. The video provides guidance on:
• identifying when to request a review
• information you should include in your review request
• checking the progress of current reviews
• viewing the history of completed reviews.
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