Aged care news highlights from the week ending 01 December 2023, aggregated by Ideagen CompliSpace.

The information in the Weekly Wrap is aggregated from other news sources to provide you with news that is relevant to the aged care sector across Australia and worldwide. Each paragraph is a summary of the subject matter covered in the particular news article. The information does not necessarily reflect the views of Ideagen CompliSpace.

COVID-19 News 

The hard facts about Australia's antimicrobial use

According to Hospital and Healthcare, each year hundreds of people in Australia die as a result of drug-resistant infections, known as antimicrobial resistance, which is greatly worsened by misuse and overuse of antibiotics. Globally, WHO estimates that antimicrobial resistance could result in up to 10 million deaths each year by 2050.

Influenza vaccination reporting now open

According to the Department of Health and Aged Care, residential aged care and home care providers should report influenza vaccinations provided in 2023 for:

• aged care residents, where applicable
• residential and home care staff, who have voluntarily provided information.

Access the online reporting form until Thursday 29 February 2024.

Other News

RN minutes falling short

According to Australian Ageing Agenda, aged care providers are continuing to fall short of the mandatory minutes of care residents should be receiving from registered nurses, new analysis shows.

New video series on the Aged Care Quality Standards

According to the Department of Health and Aged Care, the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission has launched the Up to Standards video series. The new video series was developed to answer the most common questions on the strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards. The first episode discusses the anticipated timing of implementation and the Commission’s role.  If you have any questions or feedback about the Standards, please email agedcarereform@agedcarequality.gov.au to help the Commission ensure that the sector is prepared.  

More private funding needed to meet aged care demands

According to Aged Care Insite, the aged care sector will need $72b over the next seven years, a Grant Thornton report has found, and the majority of funding will need to shift from the public to private sector.

Are privacy threats to the healthcare industry increasing?

According to Aged Care Insite, digital transformation has revolutionised the aged care sector, allowing facilities to enhance their quality of care, efficiency, and patient experience. However, it has also presented a new and growing threat – privacy breaches. According to the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC), over 76,000 cybercrime reports were received during the 2021-22 financial year; one every seven minutes and a 13 per cent year-over-year increase.

Alternative clinical care arrangements for when a Registered Nurse is not on-site

According to the Department of Health and Aged Care, residential aged care facilities must have a registered nurse (RN) onsite and on duty 24 hours a day, 7 days a week unless they have an exemption. When there isn’t an RN onsite, providers must have alternative clinical care arrangements in place to meet the clinical care needs of residents at all times. The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission has published a fact sheet on alternative care arrangements.  

Prepare now for bushfire season: Resident relocation

According to the Department of Health and Aged Care, in an emergency like a bushfire, you may need to relocate residents to maintain their level of care. When this happens, you can temporarily relocate residents to a different aged care home or location. You do not need to discharge them from your service. Our fact sheet covers temporary relocation of resident arrangements. For contact details and more help to maintain service continuity during emergencies, visit Service continuity and emergency events in aged care. 

Residents’ absences under appraised

According to Australian Ageing Agenda, aged care providers are significantly underassessing the impact of unexplained absences of residents, according to a regulatory report.

Allied health: ‘it’s only got worse,’ says peak

According to Australian Ageing Agenda, the residential aged care sector’s funding model is negatively impacting allied health provision, according to the profession’s national peak.

Residential care complaints down; home care complaints up

According to Australian Ageing Agenda, complaints about residential aged care services have dropped while complaints about home care services have risen, a first-of-its-kind report from the regulator shows. Published by the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission, the report, Complaints about aged care services – Insights for providers, explores the complaints received by the regulatory body about aged care services.

Home Care News

On-the-ground support for CHSP providers

Home support providers should seek out and get to know the well-informed support and development staff on hand in their region to assist, a sector support lead tells Community Care Review.

Legislation

Advance Care Directives (Review) Amendment Bill 2022 (No. 34 of 2022) [SA] – passed Council and returned to Assembly for final stages 16 November 2023

This bill seeks to amend the Advance Care Directives Act to improve the functioning of the advance care directive legislation in South Australia.