The Aged Care Quality and Safety Advisory Council (Advisory Council) is established under Section 37 of the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission Act 2018.
The Advisory Council provides advice to the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commissioner in relation to the Commissioner’s functions and may also advise the Minister in relation to these functions on request.
Advisory Council members have a wealth of knowledge and experience in aged care, with diverse backgrounds in areas such as clinical care, service delivery and consumer representation.
Advisory Council Members:
Chair
Ms Andrea Coote
Members
Ms Carolanne Barkla
Dr Matthew Cullen
Ms Sally Evans
Dr Dorothy Jones
Prof. Susan Kurrle
Ms Maree McCabe
Mr Paul Sadler
Mr Ian Yates AM
Ex officio
Ms Janet Anderson PSM (Commissioner)
Dr Melanie Wroth (Chief Clinical Advisor)
Ms Amy Laffan (Department of Health)
Options Paper on the Regulatory Powers of the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission
In December 2019 the Advisory Council provided advice, at the request of the Minister for Aged Care and Senior Australians, Senator the Hon Richard Colbeck, on additional powers that the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission should have to achieve its objectives, further to those transferred to the Commission from the Department of Health on 1 January 2020.
The advice provided was in the form of an options paper framed around eight areas identified for change. The advice included work already underway, as well as options which would require consideration of legislative change and resourcing.
As requested by the Minister, the development of the options paper considered the Interim Report of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety (Royal Commission) and recommendations of the Carnell Inquiry into events at Earle Haven in identifying and developing priorities for change.
In January 2020, the Minister notified the Advisory Council that he had shared the options paper with the Royal Commission to assist with its consideration of quality and safety regulation.
In April 2020, senior staff from the Royal Commission met with the Advisory Council to discuss the contents of the options paper.
You can read the options paper here.