Individual Support

We wanted to share some successful examples we’ve seen of providers engaging with older people and embracing feedback

Getting consent to medical treatment is not only a legal requirement but good clinical practice in aged and palliative care. It’s also a key requirement under the Aged Care Quality Standards. These fact sheets include detailed information about the law on consent to medical treatment.

We have released a suite of fact sheets to help providers, aged care workers, and other stakeholders understand the new strengthened Quality Standards and their obligations in meeting them.

Watch our video series answering the most common questions we have received about the strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards.

This draft guidance material is intended to support providers to comply with the strengthened Quality Standards. It also aims to promote best practice in service provision.

A startup based in the United Kingdom has created a virtual reality experience for people living with dementia. The personalized immersive experiences include an individual’s hobbies and places they have visited, with the aim to help individuals access memories and improve their mental and social well-being.

It’s the right of all people receiving aged care to have an enjoyable dining experience. However, older people can struggle with loss of appetite, loneliness or boredom. Some aged care services are using creativity and technology to meet these challenges.

This is the final draft of the strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards which will inform legislative drafting into the new Aged Care Act.

We have updated our Regulatory Bulletin on Workforce-related responsibilities – including 24/7 registered nurse and care minutes. It explains providers' responsibilities and how we will regulate these and respond to non-compliance.

After several recent reported break-ins where older Australians have been confronted by intruders, we want to remind residential providers of their obligations around the safety and security of people in their care.

Older people can develop eating, drinking and swallowing difficulties that increase the risk of something going wrong when they eat or drink.

Following the report of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety, the government is rewriting the 1997 Aged Care Act with a view to it commencing on July 1 2024 – less than five months from now.

Swallowing difficulties can affect a person’s health, wellbeing and their ability to enjoy their meals. We have created new resources to help people receiving aged care and their families, as well as providers and staff to understand and spot the signs of swallowing difficulties and take action.

The importance of food can’t be overstated. Along with the obvious nutritional benefits for physical health, food plays an important role in mental wellbeing. This article includes key points to consider in supporting holiday food traditions and offering ways to take part in celebrations and how to recognise and cater to people from culturally diverse backgrounds and with different religious beliefs.

A suite of colouring resources is now available to provide a multifaceted creative experience for older Australians living in residential or home aged care settings, and for the people who care for them.

Older people, including those living in aged care homes, are more at risk of dehydration. This can quickly lead to serious and dangerous clinical outcomes. This article lists ways to help older people to stay hydrated.

Last month the Commission's Chief Clinical Advisor, Dr Melanie Wroth MB BS FRACP, issued an important summer clinical alert. The alert includes advice and information about monitoring and caring for older people during the summer to prevent dehydration, heat exhaustion or stress and heat stroke.

The Bulletin helps services understand how specific requirements and processes fit into the aged care regulatory framework.

In preparation of the strengthened Quality Standards being introduced on 1 July 2024, the aged Care Quality and Safety Commission has created the video series Up to Standard. Here you'll find the latest updates and answers to the most common questions the Commission has received about the strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards.

From 1 October, residential aged care providers must meet care minutes targets.

In this month’s Food for Thought, we share some ideas to help carers make sure that residents living with dementia get the nutrition and hydration they need, with as much enjoyment as possible.

Behaviour support planning is essentially good care planning, explains Marie Alford

The setting and atmosphere for dining in aged care homes should be designed for the senses, writes Daniela Kaiser.

East Wimmera Aged Care Services has been focusing on food to improve residents' wellbeing, writes Scott Wilson.

Improve your resident's health and wellbeing by supporting them to get outside every day, writes Kate Lamont.

With some key information and a dose of fun, home care recipients can get - and enjoy - the exercise they need, writes Dr Elissa Burton.

Providers are engaging seniors to help them regain and retain their independence, writes Natasha Egan.

Last year was a whirlwind of reform and, as Christopher Kelly reports, the industry can brace itself for more of the same this year.

On 20 June, the Commission’s Chief Clinical Advisor, Dr Melanie Wroth issued a clinical alert on preventing medication transcribing and dispensing errors in residential aged care. The alert followed the preventable death of an aged care resident as a direct result of being given medications that weren’t prescribed for them.

The Government is planning to introduce a new regulatory model for aged care as part of the new Aged Care Act. The new model is being designed to increase protections for older people and support providers to continuously improve. You can find more information on how we will support providers to prepare for the new regulatory model and strengthened Quality Standards on our website. You can also watch the recording and view the presentation slides from our webinar on our Stronger Standards, Better Aged Care program.

The words we use to describe both the condition of dementia itself and a person’s behaviours are as important as the actions and responses we choose. Our responses as carers should be compassionate, person-centred and based on knowledge of the individual. This resource contains information about the language we use around dementia and links to helpful information.

Star Ratings were introduced in December 2022 for all residential aged care services. The ratings make it easier for someone who is looking for, or already accessing, aged care services to compare the quality and safety of aged care homes. This brief guide outlines the meaning of the star ratings and how the ratings are calculated.

To provide clear guidance where directions from local state or territory public health authorities are not available, 12 aged care consumer and provider organisations have developed an updated version of the Sector Code for Visiting in Aged Care Homes version 7.2.

As reflected in the Commission’s recent report, Analysis of food and dining experiences in residential aged care services, people bring a range of tastes, practices and attitudes regarding food with them on entry to long-term care settings. There are many ways you can support and encourage residents to have a voice about their food and dining experience – you can access great resources and read some examples in the positive stories on our website.

Earlier this month, the Commission’s Chief Clinical Advisor, Dr Melanie Wroth issued a clinical alert on hot water scalding. The alert followed an incident in NSW where a person receiving personal care from a disability services provider suffered severe burns (scalds) while being bathed.

The Older Persons Advocacy Network (OPAN) recently hosted a webinar, Food, glorious food: what to do if it’s not. It explores what older people can expect from service providers during mealtimes and how to provide effective feedback.

There are many factors that can influence a person’s dining experience in residential aged care. To make effective improvements, it’s important to have a deeper understanding of needs and interests from the residents’ perspectives. The Commission has published a report outlining the key findings of an analysis of food and dining experience surveys that Older Persons Advocacy Network (OPAN) conducted.

Supporting older Australians to make informed choices about their food, drink and dining experiences is a key part of maintaining their quality of life in residential aged care. To assist providers, workers and older Australians, we have released a suite of resources on consumer choice as part of our collection of food, dining and nutrition resources.

The design of some Australian nursing homes may be worsening the health and quality of life of residents, say QUT researchers whose study found many residents prefer spending hours in their room to socialising or participating in activities in communal areas.

The article provides an overview of the significant changes made in the aged care sector in Australia. Topics discussed include the introduction of the funding model for residential care on October 1, 2022, the release of the "Guiding Principles for Medication Management in Residential Aged Care Facilities" by the Department of Health and Aged Care, and the implementation of the Code of Conduct for Aged Care on December 1, 2022 by the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission.

The Code of Conduct for Aged Care, in effect since 1 December 2022, aims to improve safety and well-being for people receiving aged care and to boost trust in services. It describes the behaviour expected of aged care providers, their workers and governing persons. The Commission has developed a range of resources, including detailed guidance, to assist you to understand your responsibilities under the Code.

This guide for workers provides a quick introduction to the new Code of Conduct for Aged Care.

This fact sheet outlines the steps that aged care staff should take to:
- Consult with residents
- Assess the need for texture modified food and drink
- Correctly prepare texture modified food and drink that looks, smells and tastes great.

This fact sheet provides an overview of how you can support people with swallowing difficulties, also known as dysphagia, to have safe and enjoyable mealtimes in aged care.

One idea to remedy the aged care crisis would be to shift to a more integrated approach to aged care, such as co-design — a model that includes the input of older people in the development of an aged care facility, ranging from the layout of a facility to the day-to-day activities of residents

Condition overtakes coronary heart disease with 62% rise in number of healthy years lost since 2011, report finds, causing significant impact on carers and families

Find out how embracing diversity and inclusion can support you to provide quality palliative care to older people.

Following the introduction on 1 December of the Serious Incident Response Scheme (SIRS) in home services, home service providers have started submitting SIRS notifications to the Commission.

To support a resident who rerquired texture modified foods, a service came up with a strategy to make the texture modified meals more attractive and appetising by changing the way the food was prepared and presented.