Your Aged Care Update # 41/24
Notable dates
Support at Home pricing consultation
Closes 25 October
Webinar: Culturally Inclusive Home Care
29 October
In this issue
News about the reforms
Webinar: New regulatory model
We are holding a webinar for providers on the new aged care regulatory model.
When: Thursday 14 November, 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm (AEDT).
You will learn about:
benefits of the new regulatory model and how it will work
the new registration process and how we are preparing providers
changes to reporting and what to expect
how providers will be regulated
engagement and communications.
You can submit questions before the webinar.
Register now.
Sector news
Care Sector Demand Map
The Care Sector Demand Map now includes aged care services.
The map shows data on aged care and National Disability Insurance Scheme participation levels. It includes spending and services to help inform business decisions in a local area. It also shows the number of aged care recipients and providers.
You can filter by:
postcode
local government area
statistical area from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Webinar: High risk weather season
The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) is holding a webinar for the aged care sector. It will discuss the high risk weather expected this summer and how to prepare.
When: Monday 4 November, 1:00 pm to 2:00 pm (AEDT).
It will include:
a seasonal climate outlook
information on support and resources
an opportunity to ask questions.
Register your interest by emailing HRWS@nema.gov.au by 1 November. Please include your name, title, company, preferred email address and phone details. NEMA will then send you a meeting invite.
Residential care
Star Ratings: Provider preview now available
The latest update to Star Ratings is now available for preview in the Government Provider Management System (GPMS).
The preview period commenced on 17 October and will be available for 2 weeks.
It includes updates to:
Staffing and Quality Measures ratings for April to June 2024
Residents’ Experience ratings for homes that completed their annual survey between June and August 2024
contemporary Compliance ratings.
Access GPMS user guide: Star Ratings for more information and support.
For technical support, please call the My Aged Care service provider and assessor helpline on 1800 836 799 and select option 5.
Care minutes and 24/7 registered nurse guides
We have updated the care minutes and 24/7 registered nurse (RN) responsibilities guides for residential aged care providers.
You can now find two separate guides for the care minutes and the 24/7 RN responsibilities. These will help you understand your obligations as a provider, including reporting and compliance.
Read the new guides. We encourage you to bookmark this landing page to keep the latest version readily available.
Quality indicator resource update
From 1 April 2025, residential providers will collect new staffing quality indicator data. This data builds on existing reporting where possible.
We’ve published new guides for the staffing quality indicators:
enrolled nursing
allied health
lifestyle officers.
We’ve also updated some of our factsheets.
These resources will help you understand and meet your obligations.
Read the new guides and updated factsheets to help you prepare.
Workforce
End-of-life care resources
Download free resources to help you manage and train staff in end-of-life care.
Resources include practical forms to help you deliver end-of-life care and information to give to older people and their families. There are resources for new staff and experienced nurses.
These resources can help you meet the requirements of the strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards, including Outcome 5.7: Palliative and end-of-life care.
Find out more.
Webinar: Using writing to explore the challenges of ageing
Swinburne University’s Wellbeing Clinic is holding a webinar on how we can use writing to help make sense of our own experience of ageing.
When: Friday 1 November, 4:45 pm to 6:00 pm (AEDT).
It will discuss how we can use writing to reflect on age related changes to our identity, health and roles.
This webinar is for people working in aged care, as well as psychologists, social workers, counsellors and volunteers who work with older people.
Register now.
For more information, see Swinburne University’s webinar schedule.
Forced Adoption: Practical Skills and Awareness
Many people who have experienced forced adoption may have complicated feelings about entering into residential aged care. This impacts their ability to trust these services and make choices about their personal care.
Forced Adoption: Practical Skills and Awareness is an online training course for the aged care workforce and community service sector.
It will:
support workers who talk to people impacted by forced adoption
help to reduce the risks of retriggering people with past trauma
explain the history and impacts of forced adoption.
Australian Government-funded aged care providers can view the training at Aged Care Learning Information Solution. All other providers can visit the Department of Social Services website.