Findings from the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission (ACQSC) Sector Performance Report have found lack of safe staffing as the primary cause of concern for residents and their families.

Out of 1,558 complaints lodged, from January to March 2021, 259 complaints related to issues involving poor or inadequate staffing levels.

The report details, 35% of residential care services in Australia were the subject of a compliant to the Commission, with NSW aged care facilities receiving the highest number of complaints.

Over the course of the reporting period, 133 services were found non-complaint against one or more of the Aged Care Quality Standards.

What are the Aged Care Quality Standards?

There are eight standards used to determine the performance of an aged care facility. Failure to adhere to these results in loss of accreditation and the inability for providers to continue to receive subsidies from the Commonwealth Government.

According to the report, over the three-month reporting period (January – March 2021), NSW received over three times as many notices for non-compliance and notices to remedy than any other state.

NSW aged care facilities are the worst performing facilities nationally, with 30 aged care facilities having accreditations either revoked or varied by the Commission due to non-compliance.

This rate of non-compliance is four times higher than any other state.

The most common reason aged care services were found to be non-compliant, was a failure to provide safe and effective personal and clinical care.

Complaints made by relatives and residents regarding poor staffing levels in aged care facilities indicate that urgent reform is needed.  

Join the campaign to fix chronic and widespread understaffing in aged care here.