The Department of Health and Aged Care (DoHAC) published the strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards – Final Draft in December 2023. The DoHAC confirmed this final draft is not expected to undergo any further changes and will become operational once the new Aged Care Act is enacted. The adjustments made from the earlier version were based on feedback received throughout the consultation process, which was undertaken over six weeks between 17th October 2022 – 25 November 2022.
Strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards Framework
The framework of the Strengthened Aged Care Standards includes a total of seven Standards as outlined below;
- Standard 1 – The Person
- Standard 2 – The Organisation
- Standard 3 – The Care and Services
- Standard 4 – The Environment
- Standard 5 – Clinical Care
- Standard 6 – Food and Nutrition
- Standard 7 – The Residential Community
These Standards aim to ensure clear and usable information to inform providers and older people what they can expect when accessing aged care services. Each Standard encompasses the following four components;
- The intent of each standard
- Expectation statement for older people
- Outcomes statement
- Actions
Guidance material
To assist aged care providers in understanding and meeting their responsibilities under the Strengthened Aged Care Standards, the DoHAC released the following guidance material;
- Introduction
- Standard 1
- Standard 2
- Standard 3
- Standard 4
- Standard 5
- Standard 6
- Standard 7
- Draft audit methodology
- Draft evidence framework
- Draft guidance for aged care workers
- Draft pre-audit preparation tool
- Draft request for Information template – category 4 & 5
- Draft request for Information template – category 6
- Glossary
- Framework analysis
What providers can do now to prepare
Providers should be planning their strategy for transitioning to the Strengthened Quality Standards. Additional actions within the Standards require planning and consideration of system suitability, capability, and availability of resources. For example, under Standard 3, Action 3.3.4 requires providers to ‘provide Monthly Care Statements to older people in residential aged care’. Monthly care statements should include information on the care received and any changes or events during the preceding period, which may include;
- nutrition and weight
- changes to medication management
- appointments, hospital or GP visits
- wound management
- mobility and falls
- wellbeing activities, such as social activities, arts and crafts or exercise.
Where providers have systems in place that do not automate this process from within their care management system, providers will need to determine how this activity will be undertaken. The management team needs to consider the expenses associated with human resourcing and compare this with the costs of updating/changing systems to gain efficiency, accuracy, and compliance.
How Acredia can assist
Software providers like Acredia are forward-thinking, flexible and actively cater to their clients’ needs. Acredia has the functionality for monthly care statement development at the push of a button, which has been in place since 2023. The software also supports efficiency gains through its simple solutions to complex problems methodology. Streamlining multiple systems to support aged care providers in managing their data across;
- Aged care management software
- Clinical and Medication management
- Quality and incident management
- Human Resources
- CRM
- Family App
Simplifying processes through innovative technology enables your workforce to focus on high-value activities, resulting in better care outcomes while effectively managing human resources and costs.
To learn more about Acredia software, visit our resources page or contact us to book an initial discovery meeting or demonstration of our platform.
