STEP 1
How do I navigate the Aged Care System?
What is the government's role in aged care?
Government's role in aged care
The Commonwealth government is responsible for the aged care system in Australia. Aged care falls under the Department of Health and Aged Care. The majority of aged care homes receive Federal government funding via subsidies.
The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission
Before they can receive Commonwealth funding, all aged care homes in Australia have to be accredited and approved by the Australian Government. The government organisation responsible for managing both the accreditation process and the quality systems for government subsidised aged care homes is the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission.
Aged care homes must comply with all 42 requirements of the eight quality standards at all times.
The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission publishes a report of every accreditation audit (including any notices of non-compliance or sanctions) on its website.
Monitoring the quality of aged care homes
To be accredited and to receive government funding, aged care homes MUST all go through the same process of accreditation on a regular and ongoing basis.
The length of time awarded to a home for its accreditation status is a reflection of the findings in the assessment process. Aged care homes with 3-year accreditation have met the standards effectively. Homes with 1-year or 2-year accreditation have met the standards but generally still need to make some changes or improvements.
Can I find out if an aged care home has failed to meet accreditation standards?
There are two ways of finding out if a home is fully accredited or has a problem with accreditation, including the nature of the problem.
1. The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission publishes the full report of every aged care home’s accreditation audit on its website. If a home has been issued with a ‘notice of non-compliance’ that will be clearly stated of the front page of the report, including the reasons why. The report will also note if the Quality Commission has issued any regulatory notices such as Notice to Remedy or Notice to Impose Sanctions.
To read the current accreditation audit report of any Commonwealth subsidised aged care home, you can use the Quality Commission’s search function or the Quality Commission’s Non-Compliance Log.
2. The My Aged Care website also identifies aged care homes that have received regulatory notices in its Aged Care Home Finder. When you click onto a home in the finder, the basic information provided includes a statement which will say if there are any regulatory notices for the home. My Aged Care will also show each home's Star Rating which includes a Compliance Star Rating out of 5 stars. Compliance Rating should mean the home has no formal regulatory notices in the last three years.
Aged care audits are incredibly thorough down to interviewing not only the residents by the resident's family. Most take several days with two inspectors on site.
Jill Donaldson
agedcare101
Physiotherapist