Aged Care Reform Updates

The Australian Aged Care system is going through a major reform that will place older Australians at the centre of how aged care is delivered. These reforms will provide greater transparency of services, easier access to services, quality improvements, safety, and consumer choice.

SMRC has started providing our aged care consumers with regular updates on these changes that will assist them in understanding how these changes will affect them. Some of these changes commenced on 1 December 2022 and below is a summary of the changes that SMRC has adopted.

New Code of Conduct for Aged Care

As of 1 December 2022, a new Code of Conduct for Aged Care was released and while the Commonwealth has indicated that the Code of Conduct does not apply to CHSP (Commonwealth Home Support Programme) providers, SMRC has adopted this new Code of Conduct as best practice.

Serious Incident Reporting Scheme – SIRS

Our consumer’s safety is our priority and as of 1 December 2022, all aged care providers are required to report any serious incidents directly to the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission. In line with this change, SMRC is reviewing our policies and procedures, and we are ensuring our staff are across how our reporting processes reflects and adheres to the new requirements. Nothing changes for our consumers, as SMRC continues to ensure we provide you with high-quality, and safe services.