Introduction

From 1 December 2022, the Serious Incident Response Scheme (SIRS) will be extended to home care and flexible care providers. This article will provide a brief overview of who the changes apply to, what they mean and what your aged care service will need to do to get ready. It is important to note that, while the remit of the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission to require notifications on reportable incidents has now been extended to home care and flexible care provided in a home or community setting, approved providers must always have regard to all their obligations (whether or not they relate to something that is a reportable incident) when providing care and services.

Who Will The Changes Apply To?

The changes will apply to home care providers and flexible care providers in a home or residential setting. This includes organisations which provide:

• Home Care Packages (HCP)
• Short-Term Restorative Care at home
• the Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP)
• National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Aged Care (NATSIFAC)
• Multi-Purpose Services (MPS) Programs
• Transition Care Program (TCP) services.

What Are The New Rules?

The SIRS will largely operate the same way for home care providers as it currently does for residential providers. An exposure draft and explanatory statement of the new rules were released on 31 October 2022. The draft and statement outlined some differences between the SIRS for residential care and home care providers, including:

• creating a new category of reportable incident for home care providers when a care recipient goes missing in the course of an approved provider providing home care and where there are reasonable grounds to report that fact to the police
• clarifying that conduct that may otherwise amount to neglect is not a reportable incident if it results from a choice made by the care recipient about the care or services that the approved provider is to provide to the care recipient, and where this choice has been communicated by the care recipient to the approved provider and recorded in writing
• that, in relation to reportable incidents arising from unexpected death, the lack of control and visibility over a consumer’s day-to-day living circumstances is recognised when compared to delivery of care and services in residential settings. This means that for a home care provider an unexpected death is only a reportable incident if the death is a result of care or services provided by the approved provider or a failure of the approved provider to provide care or services.

It is important to note that reportable incidents under the SIRS relate to incidents that occur in connection with the provision of care to a care recipient. This means that reporting requirements will still apply to incidents that happen outside the care recipient’s home if they are in connection with the provision of care. On the other hand, it also means that incidents witnessed in a care recipient’s home may not be reportable if it they are not connected to the provision of care and are outside the provider’s control. This may include instances or suspicions of excessive force by a family or household member that occurs when the staff member is not present.

What Do I Need To Do To Get Ready?

In order to be compliant, approved providers must:

• review current policies and procedures to ensure that they reflect the SIRS reporting requirements, and linked workforce roles and responsibilities
• have an effective Incident Management System in place, that supports areas of mandatory reporting including the SIRS
• implement appropriate staff training on the SIRS being rolled out. This should also include incident management training in line with roles and responsibilities of workers and management
• notify the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission if a reportable incident occurs after 1 December 2022. For information on how to notify the Commission of a reportable incident, see: Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission: Serious Incident Response Scheme.

More Information

• Aged Care Legislation Amendment (Incident Management and Reporting) Instrument 2022 Exposure Draft
• Aged Care Legislation Amendment (Incident Management and Reporting) Instrument 2022 Explanatory Statement
• Aged Care Quality Bulletin, October 2022 – Introducing the SIRS in Home Services