Aged care complaints rise by 20 per cent
In the past year, there has been a 20 per cent increase in complaints to the Aged Care Complaints Commissioner about the treatment of older people in residential and home-based care.
Commissioner Rae Lamb believes the increase in complaints is improving aged care as people are seeking helping for the problems they are facing.
The Commissioner’s 2016/17 annual report revealed that of 4,713 complaints, 78 per cent were about residential care.
Of these complaints, 92 per cent had achieved an early resolution which is a 25 per cent increase from the previous year.
"I don't think the rise in complaints shows deteriorating standards of care," said Ms Lamb.
"Certainly, we see instances where care has been very poor, and there are still people who should complain who don't. Nonetheless the number of complaints has to be balanced against the fact that more than one million people receive aged care. Plus, we have been doing a great deal of work to raise our profile."
A son of two home care package recipients complained that he had been pressured into signing new home care package agreements for his parents. The agreements contained changes to exit fees that had not been agreed on.
The son later wished to move his parents’ home care packages to a new provider and due to the new agreements, a higher exit fee was being applied.
The son took the issue to the Commissioner, explaining that the provider assured him no content had been changed in the agreements and it was just a part of a required updated.
The Commissioner’s team contacted the service provider and the provider agreed that they had not sufficiently explained the fee changes. The exit fees were then waived for the son’s parents.
"This year I challenged the industry to talk more about complaints and what they do about them. Complaints are a normal part of providing care and services. People need to know it's okay to complain and that when things go wrong, making a complaint can lead to improved care,” Ms Lamb said.
The Commissioner takes complaints about residential care, residential respite care, home care packages, the Commonwealth Home Support Programme, flexible care, including transition care, and the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Aged Care Program.
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