Public consultation opens on charter of rights

Aged care providers are being invited to have their say on a draft Charter of Aged Care Rights which both they and the person entering care will be expected to sign.

Aged care providers are being invited to have their say on a draft Charter of Aged Care Rights which both they and the person entering care will be expected to sign.

Minister for Senior Australians and Aged Care Ken Wyatt says public consultation is now open on the new single charter, which he says is a vital part of the reform agenda.

It will replace four existing charters relating to the rights and responsibilities of aged care recipients and is a component of the Single Aged Care Quality Framework and Aged Care Quality Standards which are set to begin from next July.

The draft charter of rights includes the right to:

  • receive safe and high quality care
  • be treated with dignity and respect
  • have identity, culture and diversity supported
  • maintain independence
  • live without abuse
  • be informed about care
  • maintain control and decision making
  • be listened to
  • choose to have someone speak for me
  • complain
  • exercise my rights
  • privacy

“Having a shared understanding between people receiving care and aged care providers helps everyone to work together to achieve safe, high-quality aged care,” Mr Wyatt said in a statement.

“It is my expectation that both the aged care provider and the person entering their program will sign the charter of rights.

“I encourage aged care recipients, families and carers to have their say on this fundamental issue. But we also want to hear from service providers, consumer organisations, advocacy groups and anyone else with an interest in aged care rights. “

Mr Wyatt said implementing a single charter across all aged care would make rights clearer for consumers as well as reducing regulatory compliance obligations for providers who deliver multiple types of care.

People wanting to have their say can comment here until October 10.

Qld launches parliamentary review

Meanwhile in Premier Annastacia Palaszcuk has announced a parliamentary review into Queensland’s aged care, saying too many families are troubled by the cost and complexity of care in the state.

“We know it’s not good enough and that it must be fixed and this parliamentary first is the first truly significant step in that process,” she said in a statement.

Ms Palaszcuk also said her Healthcare Committee would examine end-of-life care.

“That not only includes aged care, but palliative care and dying with dignity,” she said.

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Tags: aged-care-rights, anna-palaszcuk, charter-of-rights, community-care-review-slider, Ken Wyatt, parliamentary inquiry, public-consultation, qaulity-framework, qld-inquiry, queensland,

1 thought on “Public consultation opens on charter of rights

  1. I’ve just come across this as I have my lunch break at work.

    Another charter of rights! Well, the last charter wasn’t actually a resounding success at protecting the welfare of that most vulnerable group of people – residents with dementia in aged care facilities was it?

    So what we clearly need is another charter of rights. But reading the above, and this new charter seems to be pretty much the same as the old charter. What’s that about?

    Still, it’s always good for a government to be seen to be doing something, anything, just so long as it looks really, really good.

    Nothing rings quite like a Charter, and a CHARTER OF RIGHTS (if you put it in capital letters really has a look about it) fits the bill.

    Really does give you faith in the political system.

    Don’t you think?

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