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17 February 2025
Stories
| Aged Care Homes
This article outlines the Australian Government's Aged Care Quality Standards, which set the expectations for quality care in a residential aged care setting. It details the current 8 standards, including consumer dignity, ongoing assessment, personal and clinical care, daily living support, service environment, feedback mechanisms, human resources, and organisational governance. The role of the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission in compliance is also discussed
In this article:
The 8 Aged Care Quality Standards are designed to see that older Australians receive high-quality care and support. All government-funded aged care providers must comply with these standards and are monitored and assessed in line with them.
Your loved one deserves to be treated with dignity and respect. This first standard recognises their right to make informed decisions about their care whenever possible so they can live their best life the way they choose. It’s about helping them maintain their sense of self and personal and cultural identity. It’s also about ensuring their privacy is always respected.
The first of the Aged Care Quality Standards is built around 7 key concepts:
Dignity and respect
Identity, culture, and diversity
Cultural safety
Choice
Dignity of risk
Information
Personal privacy
The second of the Aged Care Quality Standards is designed to make sure your loved one is heard so that they are partners in their own care and actively involved in both the initial assessment and ongoing planning. It helps them receive health and wellbeing support and services that are in line with their needs, goals, and preferences.
The aim is to ensure the care they receive keeps them on track to live their best life, the way they want to live it. Regular reviews should address any changes in health so that services can be adjusted to support them in daily living, while still meeting their goals.
Your loved one will receive both personal care and clinical care in an aged care facility. Personal care and clinical care will include things like:
This standard focuses on maximising your loved one’s health and wellbeing, while also making sure it continues to meet their needs, goals, and preferences. The emphasis is on the safe, effective and quality delivery of personal care and clinical care.
Your loved one will also receive services and support for daily living in an aged care facility, including things like keeping their room clean and tidy, meals, transport, and other services to encourage and support them to be interested and engaged in the world around them. These daily living services are not just about providing what’s necessary for their needs to be met, but also about helping them enjoy a life they have chosen.
This standard is about making sure your loved one’s physical, emotional, and social wellbeing are all taken into consideration, so that they can live their best life.
It’s important that your loved one enjoys the overall experience of living in an aged care home and is comfortable. They need to feel that they are welcome, that it really is their home and have a genuine sense of belonging. This means the aged care home should suit not only their needs in terms of safety, security, and accessibility but also their preferences in things like furnishings and facilities and personal spaces, such as their own room.
This standard covers these various aspects of the environment where your loved one will live. It also details how a facility can support them in engaging with those around them. It includes how outdoor areas can be made welcoming and accessible and private spaces made available within the facility to visit with family and friends.
Standard 6 of the Aged Care Quality Standards deals with the mechanisms in place to help your loved one feel comfortable providing feedback and making complaints. They need to know that their aged care facility actively encourages feedback, takes it seriously, responds to it and acts accordingly.
They should feel the same way about making complaints. The process should be easy and free from adverse repercussions. Their issues must be taken seriously and action taken when necessary.
Feedback and complaints should also lead the way for better quality service.
Quality care and services happen when they are delivered by knowledgeable, capable, and caring people. This standard requires aged care providers to employ enough skilled and qualified people to enable them to deliver safe, respectful and quality care and services.
This revolves around four key concepts:
The eighth of the Aged Care Quality Standards is about being comfortable that the aged care facility is well-run and the governing body is held accountable for the delivery of safe and quality aged care. It is also about making your loved one feel they can contribute towards improving it.
The governance systems in place need to assess, monitor and drive improvement in the quality and safety of the care while also making sure residents enjoy the care experience. Providers need to plan for and manage internal and external emergencies and disasters and have effective infection prevention and control procedures in place.
These current Standards will be strengthened as part of the new Aged Care Act and regulatory model, due to come into effect on 1 July 2025.
The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission (ACQSC) monitors and assesses compliance with the Aged Care Quality Standards in Australia.
To make sure providers meet the Aged Care Quality Standards, the ACQSC visits home provider sites and conducts audits and quality reviews.
The Commission's role includes:
This helps make sure your loved one receives the high-quality, safe, and respectful care they need.
At BaptistCare, we’ve been providing quality, person-centred care for over 80 years across our Residential Aged Care communities in New South Wales, ACT, and Western Australia.
We put People First, and support residents with dignity and respect, whether they are independent, have complex clinical needs or require dementia care, right through to end-of-life palliative care. Our dedicated team partners with residents and families, providing a holistic approach to see that that residents are well cared for, feel safe, and are living well, because we care.
If you would like to know more about BaptistCare residential aged care services, why not chat with one of our friendly team – we’d be happy to talk with you about your situation and care needs and can arrange a tour around your nearest BaptistCare residential aged care home.
Use our simple online search tool to explore BaptistCare Aged Care Home locations across NSW, ACT and WA.
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