” Health conditions associated with ageing often affect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people earlier than other Australians.³

This is reflected in the Australian Government policy to provide Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people access to aged care services from 50 years old, in comparison to 65 years old for the broader population.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are also designated as a special needs group under the Aged Care Act 1997 and all aged care service providers must have regard to the particular physical, physiological, social, spiritual, environmental and other health related care needs of individual recipients.4″

From ANAO Audit report Download here

Dep of Health Audit report Indigenous Aged Care

Image above from here

Background

1. The Australian Government provided $15.2 billion in funding to the aged care sector in 2014–15 and $16.2 billion in 2015–16.

Aged Care services were delivered to 35 083 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in 2014–15 at an estimated cost of $216 million¹ (approximately 1.4 per cent of the total aged care budget).²

2. See above intro ⁴

3. The Australian Government funds aged care services to assist frail older people, and the carers of frail older people, to remain living at home as well as residential aged care services. The programs funded include:

• the Commonwealth Home Support Program, which provides entry-level home support for older people who need assistance to keep living independently;
• the Home Care Packages Program, which provides services tailored to meet individuals’ specific care needs including care services, support services, clinical services and other services to support older people to remain living at home and connected to their communities; and
• residential aged care, which provides supported accommodation services for older people who are unable to continue living independently in their own homes.

4. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people also have access to aged care services funded through the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Aged Care Program (Flexible Program). In 2015–16 funding for the Flexible Program was approximately $37 million, based on agreed funded places rather than occupancy. The Flexible Program aims to provide aged care services that meet the specific needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in a culturally appropriate setting, close to home and community. The majority of Flexible Program services are delivered in regional, remote and very remote locations.⁵

5. The Department of Health is responsible for leading the development of evidence based policy, determining the allocation of funding, and regulation of the Commonwealth aged care system to improve the wellbeing of older Australians as well as the implementation of the aged care reforms. The Australian Aged Care Quality Agency is responsible for assessing the quality of care of Australian Government funded aged care service providers. This is done through:

• the accreditation of residential aged care service providers;
• quality reviews of aged care provided to people living in their own homes or in the community; and
• education and training on quality aged care to the aged care sector.

Audit objective and criteria

6. The objective of the audit was to assess the effectiveness of Australian Government-funded aged care services delivered to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. To form a conclusion against the audit objective, the ANAO adopted the following high level criteria:

• Is there an effective framework in place to support access by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to quality aged care services?
• Do the Department of Health and the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency have effective frameworks to oversee the delivery of aged care services to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people?
• Does the Department of Health have appropriate arrangements in place for monitoring and reporting on the achievement of program objectives and supporting the cost effectiveness and service continuity of aged care delivery to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people?

Conclusion

7. Australian Government-funded aged care services are largely delivered effectively to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

8. The ageing of Australia’s population and growing diversity among older people, in terms of their care needs, preferences and socioeconomic status, are placing pressure on the depth and agility of Australia’s aged care system. There are additional challenges in ensuring access to culturally appropriate care and service continuity for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, particularly for those living in remote and very remote communities. Some Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people may also have language or cultural preferences that influence their specific requirements.

9. The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Aged Care Program has been effective in increasing the access to culturally appropriate aged care services for elderly Indigenous Australians. The direct selection and recurrent funding approach of the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Aged Care Program provides few opportunities for new service providers to enter the market. There would be benefit in the Department of Health extending the application process to new service providers and better aligning the funded places with service capacity.

10. The Department of Health has developed sufficient guidance materials and provides supplementary funding to support Indigenous-focused services that operate under the Commonwealth Home Support, Home Care Packages and residential programs. However, not all Indigenous-focused services are aware of the Department of Health’s sector support programs.⁶

11. The Department of Health and the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency have been largely effective in their administration of Australian Government-funded aged care services delivered to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Each entity has developed sound administrative arrangements to manage the delivery of aged care services and to review the quality of care delivered through aged care programs. The Department of Health can strengthen its administration by implementing a coordinated approach that ensures the timely sharing of relevant information to facilitate risk assessments across the Ageing and Aged Care Group.

12. Consistent with its policy intent, the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Aged Care Program is a more cost effective and viable model for specialised aged care delivery to Indigenous Australians when services are located in remote and very remote communities. A 25.8 per cent share of National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Aged Care Program funding is allocated to services located in major cities and inner regional areas. To optimise recurrent funding decisions, it is important the Department of Health ensures that the existing service providers, their location and number of places, remain the most appropriate.

13. Given that the majority of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people access aged care through Commonwealth Home Support Program, Home Care Packages Program and residential aged care programs, further work is required by the Department of Health to maintain the service continuity of Indigenous-focused service providers in areas where there are no culturally secure alternatives. The Department of Health has an opportunity to leverage its datasets to improve the targeting of sector support initiatives to Indigenous-focused services and to monitor the ongoing impacts of aged care policies and programs on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

Supporting findings

Access and use of aged care services by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people

14. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were most likely to access aged care services through the Commonwealth Home Support Program or the Home Care Packages Program, at rates consistent with their share of the aged care population. Fewer than one per cent of residential aged care places were taken up by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

15. The Department of Health has created clear and consistent pathways for individuals to access and progress through the aged care system. The My Aged Care Contact Centre and website are the main entry points to the aged care system. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are encouraged to connect with the My Aged Care Contact Centre, and can call directly or use a trusted representative to speak on their behalf. Following an initial screening undertaken by Contact Centre staff, the Regional Assessment Service assesses older people’s needs for lower intensity services available under the Commonwealth Home Support Program. Aged Care Assessment Teams assess the more complex needs of people requiring access to higher intensity care available under Home Care Packages, Transition Care, and within residential aged care.

16. A key challenge in targeting aged care services is assessing the eligibility of individuals seeking to access them as well as the scope of services. This can be particularly challenging in the context of facilitating access for individuals in remote or very remote areas, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

17. The Department of Health advised the ANAO that it is working with the aged care sector to identify opportunities to improve client pathways for diverse groups, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, to address the specific difficulties they may experience.

18. The Department of Health manages the planning and allocation of aged care residential places and Home Care packages for service providers based on the national planning benchmark, population projections and the current level of service provision. The Commonwealth Home Support Program and the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Aged Care Program are funded through a grants process.

19. Between 2012–13 and 2015–16 the number of Home Care Level 1‒2 packages allocated to Indigenous-focused service providers has not grown at the same rate as those allocated to mainstream service providers. However, the growth in Home Care Level 3‒4 package and residential place allocations to Indigenous-focused service providers have both been higher than for mainstream counterparts.

20. The distribution of the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Aged Care Program funding has remained largely unchanged since its inception. This is largely due to the continuation of grant agreements to existing services that have been in place over the life of the program. These arrangements limit the potential for new providers to access the program.

21. The Department of Health has developed operational manuals and/or guidelines to support providers in the delivery and management of aged care services for the programs reviewed as part of the audit. The Department of Health also funds two peak bodies to develop additional resources to assist with managing the change introduced by aged care reforms (including resources targeted towards remote and very remote Indigenous-focused service providers).

22. The Department of Health funds a Remote and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Aged Care Service Development Assistance Panel (SDAP) to support aged care providers. ANAO consultations with Indigenous-focussed service providers indicated that awareness of SDAP funding varied across states and territories. There would be benefit in the Department of Health raising the awareness of this assistance in a consistent manner across jurisdictions, and measuring the financial management and governance capacity that has been built and maintained among service providers as a result of having received the funding.

Administration and regulation of aged care services

23. The Department of Health has internal governance committees, templates and guidance to coordinate program administration. Health’s state and territory offices have also adopted various local strategies for engaging with Indigenous-focused service providers. The department has commenced work to strengthen relationships between its National Office and its state and territory offices, to improve links between policy development and program implementation, while still allowing for specific approaches within each jurisdiction.

24. The Department of Health has developed an Enterprise Risk Management Plan that is updated annually as part of the department’s business planning processes. Each of the programs reviewed as part of the audit included risk management (identification, analysis and evaluation) in its business processes. Risk is considered against the type of activity being funded and may result in different risk ratings being given to the same organisation across each activity or program being funded. For service providers that are funded under multiple programs, there is an opportunity for Health to implement a more coordinated approach that facilitates the timely sharing of relevant information across program areas.

25. The Australian Aged Care Quality Agency has developed policies, procedures and guidance materials to support the accreditation of residential aged care service providers, and specific policies for the quality review of Home Care Packages, Commonwealth Home Support Program and National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Flexible Aged Care Program service providers. Documents reviewed by the ANAO demonstrate that the relevant accreditation and quality review procedures were followed internally.

26. The Australian Aged Care Quality Agency has collected information on assessments of all residential service providers against the accreditation standards. This information shows that between 2000-01 and 2015-16, 95 per cent of residential Indigenous-focused service providers had at least one episode of non-compliance, in comparison with 53 per cent of non-Indigenous-focused Residential service providers. Reported instances of non-compliance mostly related to governance, including regulatory compliance, risk management and human resources as opposed to issues relating to quality of care.

27. In 2014–15 the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency delivered 716 courses, seminars and compliance assistance training events to 10 638 participants from residential and Home Care service providers. Flexible service providers receive compliance assistance training as determined through a case management process. There would be benefit in the Australian Aged Care Quality Agency expanding the proposed cost recovery model to include the indirect and direct costs recovered from courses and workshops to be consistent with the Australian Government’s stated policy intention, as well as the Australian Government Cost Recovery Guidelines.