People receiving aged care services in residential care homes should expect and have confidence they’ll receive safe, high-quality care that always meets their needs.
24/7 registered nurse obligation
Providers registered in Category 6 – residential care (including respite) must have at least one registered nurse available:
- 24 hours a day onsite and on duty at each residential care home
- unless granted an exemption by the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing (department).
You can find more information about the 24/7 registered nurse responsibility on the department’s website.
Care minutes obligation
Providers registered in Category 6 - residential care (including respite) must make sure residents receive at least a minimum amount of direct care time each day from:
- registered nurses
- enrolled nurses
- personal care workers or assistants in nursing.
Each residential care home has its own targets based on its residents’ care needs. These targets are based on a sector-wide average of 215 minutes of direct care for each resident each day. This includes 44 minutes of direct care from a registered nurse.
You can learn more about the care minutes responsibility on the department’s website.
Meeting the Aged Care Quality Standards
Under Outcome 2.8 of the strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards, providers must show they understand and manage their workforce needs, and plan for the future, to make sure they meet all their provider obligations.
This includes:
- delivering enough direct care time to residents (on average in each quarterly reporting period) to meet their care minutes targets
- always having a registered nurse onsite and on duty at each residential care home.
We expect you to work openly with your workers to plan and roster care delivery so they can meet (or do better than) these minimum requirements.
Role of the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing
The department is responsible for:
- managing the 24/7 registered nurse and care minutes requirements. This includes identifying and fixing issues that may negatively affect older people receiving care, or the residential aged care sector
- managing and deciding on applications for exemption from the 24/7 registered nurse responsibility
- managing the eligibility criteria for payments of the 24/7 registered nurse supplement
- managing care minutes reporting through QFRs and monthly 24/7 registered nurse reports from providers
- checking the accuracy of provider-reported 24/7 registered nurse and care minutes information
- providing regional stewardship and projects to train and support aged care workers. This includes helping providers to access workforce support programs.
Resources
- Workforce responsibilities – the key to delivering a great aged care experience
- Staffing obligations and mandatory care minutes
- Regulation of workforce-related responsibilities including 24/7 onsite registered nurses and care minutes (this webinar also has a presentation).
- Regulatory Bulletin
You can also read our media release on regulatory action against residential aged care providers that continued not to meet their mandatory care minute targets.
Learn more about registered providers’ Workforce obligations.
