5th Dec 2019, 10:36 AM – Senate Aged Care Legislation Amendment (New Commissioner Functions) Bill 2019 - in Committee - Staff to care recipient ratios

The majority voted against an amendment introduced by South Australian Senator Stirling Griff (Centre Alliance), which means it failed. The amendment related to staff-to-care-recipient ratios.

Amendment text

Aged Care Act 1997

1 After section 9-2

Insert:

9-2B Obligation to notify Commissioner about staff to care recipient ratios

(1) An approved provider must notify the Quality and Safety Commissioner in relation to each facility operated by the provider that provided residential care, on each notification day for each rostered shift, ratios of:

(a) care recipients to whom residential care is being provided through that facility; to

(b) each category of staff member of the provider that provides a service connected with that facility.

Note: Approved providers have a responsibility under Part 4.3 to comply with this obligation. Failure to comply with a responsibility can result in a sanction being imposed under Part 7A of the Quality and Safety Commission Act. Information notified under this section is made publicly available (see section 96-12).

(2) In counting staff members for the purposes of this section, part-time staff members are to be taken into account as an appropriate fraction of a full-time equivalent.

(3) For the purposes of subsection (1), a notification day is:

(a) the 4 days, in each year, specified in the regulations; or

(b) if no days are specified in the regulations for the purposes of paragraph (a)—each 1 January, 1 April, 1 July and 1 October.

(4) For the purposes of subsection (1), the categories of staff member are the following:

(a) registered nurses;

(b) enrolled nurses;

(c) personal care attendants;

(d) allied health staff;

(e) other staff members involved in the delivery of care.

(5) A notification under subsection (1) must be made:

(a) as soon as practicable after the day to which the notification relates; and

(b) no later than 21 days after that day.

(6) The notification must be in the form approved by the Commissioner.

(7) The notification may include an explanation by the approved provider in relation to any ratio notified. The explanation must not exceed 250 words in total.

Note: If an explanation is provided, the explanation will be made publicly available: see section 96-12.

(8) The Commissioner must cause a review of the operation of this section to be undertaken as soon as possible after the first anniversary of the commencement of this section.

(9) The review must include a review of:

(a) the operation of subsection (3) and whether the ratios referred to in subsection (1) should include a measure of care recipient acuity levels, and whether the ratios should capture other days or times including Saturdays and Sundays; and

(b) whether there should be a requirement for providers to notify the Commissioner of significant changes between notification days of the ratios referred to in subsection (1) and whether such a requirement would create an unnecessary reporting burden on small providers.

(10) The Commissioner must give the Minister a written report of the review.

(11) The Minister must cause a copy of the report of the review to be tabled in each House of the Parliament within 15 sitting days of that House after the report is given to the Minister.

(12) In this section:

staff member of an approved provider has the same meaning as in section 63-1AA.

2 After section 96-10

Insert:

96-12 Publication of staff to care recipient ratio notifications

The Quality and Safety Commissioner must make publicly available any information about staff to care recipient ratios of residential care services notified to the Commissioner under section 9-2B.