We are authorised by law to collect personal information as part of dealing with complaints under the Aged Care Act 2024 (the Act) and the Aged Care Rules 2025 (the Rules). We can collect this information directly from the person making the complaint, or from another person or organisation.
Why we collect personal information
Our main purpose in collecting personal information as part of a complaint process is to resolve the complaint. Personal information helps us:
- assess whether an older person is receiving safe, quality aged care that meets their needs
- assess if an aged care provider, worker or responsible person is meeting their legal obligations
- keep in touch with the person who made the complaint, the older person receiving care and their supporters to let them know the outcome of the complaint.
We encourage people to make a complaint to us even if they don’t want to tell us their names. However, if we don’t collect personal information, it can reduce our ability to resolve a complaint. We will make sure that anonymous complaints are appropriately addressed, but we won’t be able to involve the person who made the complaint in the process or tell them the outcome.
How personal information is used
We use personal information collected in a complaint process mainly to help us resolve the complaint. Sometimes we may use personal information collected during a complaint for our other functions, for example to:
- inform our decisions when monitoring and investigating aged care providers, workers and responsible persons to help us identify risks and take action to address them
- investigate whether an aged care provider, worker, or responsible person is acting in line with the Aged Care Code of Conduct.
We also use personal information to survey people who have made a complaint about how we can improve our services. We use Orima Research Pty Ltd (and its subcontractors) to gather this information. We, Orima Research Pty Ltd and its subcontractors must meet privacy laws which restrict how we collect, store and use the information given to us.
When personal information may be disclosed
Under the Act, we can disclose (share) personal information only in certain situations, including when:
- we have permission from the person it is about
- we are authorised or required to under the Act (Chapter 7 – Information management) or other relevant laws
- it meets another exception in the Australian Privacy Principles.
Unless the complaint is anonymous or confidential, personal information may be disclosed to another party involved in the complaint if needed to resolve it, or to explain why a complaint was finalised. This is authorised by the Act.
We regularly disclose personal information to:
- the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing
- Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency
- National Disability Insurance Scheme Quality and Safeguards Commission
- Services Australia
- state and federal police
- state coroners’ offices
- state and Australian Government departments and agencies.
We'll keep personal information confidential if the person making the complaint asks us to. Unless this will, or is likely to, put any person's safety, health or wellbeing at risk. If this happens, we'll take all reasonable steps to let the person making the complaint know before we share any information.
Overseas disclosure of personal information
We only disclose personal information overseas when:
- overseas service providers assess our email traffic for malicious and harmful content
- we send personal information to the person it is about while they’re overseas
- we have permission from the person it is about.
We'll take all reasonable steps to notify a person before we share their information in any other situation.
How to make a complaint about us
If you’ve provided your personal information to us and are concerned about the way we handled it, you can make a complaint about us.
If you are unhappy with our response to your complaint, you can complain to the Australian Information Commissioner. The Information Commissioner is independent and has the power to investigate complaints about possible breaches of privacy law.
More information is available on the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner website.
More information
We handle personal information in line with the Act, the Privacy Act 1998 and Australian Privacy Principles.
Our Privacy Policy describes:
- how we collect personal information
- what type of personal information we collect
- how we use and disclose personal information
- how to access and correct the personal information we have about you
- how to make a complaint about the way we’ve handled, used or disclosed your personal information
- how we keep personal information safe.
If you have questions or concerns, call us 1800 951 822 or email us at info@agedcarequality.gov.au.
