Press release - greater transparency for aged care facilities

Investigation into aged care and disability centres –

highlights need for transparent public voice

AGED care and disability centres at Bundaberg and Laidley (Qld) and Yooralla (Vic) are being investigated by authorities following complaints of abuse and neglect. Senator Fifield has stated that there a number of robust regulatory mechanisms in place when such instances of abuse are detected.

Care Opinion Australia’s CEO, Assoc. Professor Michael Greco, believes that such instances of mistreatment would be reduced if the aged care and disability sectors had transparent systems in place where the residents and/or their families could post comments anonymously, safely and publically about their quality of their experience.

 The Care Opinion website does just that.

 “We know from our experience in the UK that an open, transparent and safe platform, such as Care Opinion and Patient Opinion, actually support services in delivering better quality care because they hear what they do well, and where improvements can be made”, A/Prof Greco said.

It’s important that the public are made aware of the site (www.careopinion.org.au) and that aged care and disability facilities listen to what the public is saying about them.

The site is not like TripAdvisor which is about rating a service and helping the public choose a service based on their ratings. 

A/Prof Greco says “Providing feedback to aged care centres and disability services is not like rating a hotel or restaurant. When people are attending to their health and care needs, it’s much more important, and what we need to hear are the stories of that experience. We are not about choosing care, but helping people to change the quality of their care. This means we need people to tell their stories about their care – not just rate it”

What’s more important is that the facilities promote the site to their residents and families/carers, listen to what is being said, and respond to their concerns promptly.  Facilities can even document what they are doing differently in response to comments, and in this way, they are demonstrating their commitment to continuous quality improvement.

Care Opinion Australia is a not-for-profit charity whose aim is to promote constructive dialogue between the public and those who provide services. It is free to the Australian public and is funded through subscriptions by care and support facilities that engage with the site.

Media contacts

For further information, or to arrange an interview with A/Prof Greco, please contact:            

Julie McGovern                                                  Zelka Hislop

Media Advisor                                                     Communications Manager

07 33544525                                                        07  38552093           

Julie.mcgovern@patientopinion.org.au       Zelka.hislop@patientopinion.org.au

 

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