The Quality Standards Resource Centre helps extend understanding of the strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards, which take effect from 1 November 2025. The Resource Centre will be updated to reflect key changes made to the draft strengthened Standards. You can search for resources by using keywords, or filtering by standard, outcome, audience and theme. Before using the Resource Centre, please read the terms of use.
Designing dementia-friendly care environments
This resource provides guidance for professionals on designing dementia-friendly care environments to help people living with dementia to make the best of everyday life. It includes dementia enabling environment principles and an example of how to design a space using the principles. The resource also includes links to other Dementia Australia resources about developing a dementia-friendly environment.
palliAGED - Practice Centre
This resource provides information for care workers about palliative care. The Practice Centre provides links to, and information about, tools and resources to use in practice and improve care and outcomes in palliative care. It includes sections on improving practice, symptoms, medicines and tipsheets.
palliAGED - Evidence Centre
This resource provides evidence-based information for the healthcare sector about palliative care. It includes evidence summaries on topics related to palliative care, such as advance care planning, advocacy, care coordination, goals of care, nutrition and needs assessment.
Meaningful lifestyle activities
This resource discusses the importance of engagement in meaningful lifestyle activities for people living in aged care. It includes information about understanding meaningful lifestyle activities and links to a collection of resources collated by ARIIA that are relevant to this theme.
Dementia enabling environments - Care environments: Kitchen
This resource, developed by Alzheimer's WA, is a Dementia Enabling Environments illustration information sheet about kitchens in care environments. It includes principles to create enabling spaces and information about how to design the physical environment to maximise enablement and wellbeing for people living with dementia.
This resource was developed by a state/territory government or organisation and therefore its applicability and usefulness may be limited.
Dementia enabling environments - Care environments: Dining areas
This resource, developed by Alzheimer's WA, is a Dementia Enabling Environments illustration information sheet about dining areas in care environments. It includes principles to create enabling spaces and information about how to design the physical environment to maximise enablement and wellbeing for people living with dementia.
This resource was developed by a state/territory government or organisation and therefore its applicability and usefulness may be limited.
Familiar Places Webinar 2 – Bedrooms and Dining Areas
This webpage provides a video webinar focused on familiar places, such as bedrooms and dining areas, for dementia care environments. It offers insights into how these spaces can be designed to support the wellbeing of people living with dementia, with a particular emphasis on creating comfortable and familiar settings.
Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool
The ‘Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool’ (‘MUST’) is a widely used tool for identifying malnutrition risk in adults across various settings. It includes interactive e-learning modules with case studies and assessments, helping staff improve nutritional care and meet quality standards.
This resource was developed internationally and therefore its applicability and usefulness may be limited.
What is the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA)?
This resource is a validated nutrition screening and assessment tool to identify malnutrition or risk of malnutrition in people aged 65 and older. It includes an easy-to-use short form for quick identification and intervention planning.
This resource was developed internationally and therefore its applicability and usefulness may be limited.
A guide to completing the Mini Nutritional Assessment – Short Form
This resource is a guide and video for using the Mini Nutritional Assessment (MNA) to identify malnutrition in older people. It explains question scoring, interpretation, and measurement procedures, with a video demonstration.
This resource was developed internationally and therefore its applicability and usefulness may be limited.
EAT-10: A Swallowing Screening Tool
This resource offers a self-assessment tool to screen for swallowing difficulties by rating various aspects of swallowing function. A score of 3 or higher suggests potential issues that may require discussion with a healthcare provider.
This resource was developed internationally and therefore its applicability and usefulness may be limited.
Best Practice Food and Nutrition Manual for Aged Care
This manual offers practical guidelines on food and nutrition best practices in aged care homes, covering menu planning, meal enjoyment, hydration, and malnutrition prevention. It includes checklists, screening tools, and dietary considerations tailored to the needs of older people.
This resource was developed by a state/territory government or organisation and therefore its applicability and usefulness may be limited.
Dementia-friendly environments - Staff education and support
This resource offers guidance for staff support in dementia care, covering person-centred approaches, workplace culture change, training, and physical environment improvements. It includes strategies to enhance job satisfaction, staff wellbeing, and dementia-friendly care practices.
This resource was developed by a state/territory government or organisation and therefore its applicability and usefulness may be limited.
Dementia-friendly environments - Personal enjoyment
This resource provides guidance on fostering personal enjoyment for people with dementia, encouraging meaningful activities based on life history and familiar roles. It includes ideas for sensory engagement, physical activity, and social connection in home-like settings.
This resource was developed by a state/territory government or organisation and therefore its applicability and usefulness may be limited.
Dementia-friendly environments - Interior design
This resource provides guidance on interior design elements that create a familiar, practical, and dementia-friendly environment. It includes strategies for lighting, colour, furniture, and surfaces to enhance safety, wayfinding, and comfort in care settings.
This resource was developed by a state/territory government or organisation and therefore its applicability and usefulness may be limited.
Dementia-friendly environments - Designing for people with dementia
This resource provides design principles for creating dementia-friendly environments that support comfort, independence, and a sense of home. It includes guidance on optimising lighting, safety, social connection, and personalised spaces to enhance quality of life.
This resource was developed by a state/territory government or organisation and therefore its applicability and usefulness may be limited.
Standardised care processes
This resource offers evidence-based standardised care processes for aged care providers, covering high-risk clinical areas such as falls, pain, incontinence, and dehydration. It provides structured guidelines to support best practices, ensuring consistent and safe care for older people in residential settings.
This resource was developed by a state/territory government or organisation and therefore its applicability and usefulness may be limited.
Bedrooms and privacy
This resource offers guidance on maintaining personal identity for people with dementia by fostering respect, independence, and communication. It suggests environmental and social modifications to enhance dignity, such as personalising spaces, supporting mobility, and addressing unmet needs.
This resource was developed by a state/territory government or organisation, and therefore its applicability and usefulness may be limited.
Physical activity guidelines for older people
This resource provides physical activity guidelines for older people, highlighting the benefits of staying active. It recommends 30 minutes of moderate-intensity activity daily, including strength, flexibility, balance, and cardiovascular exercises. The document also provides tips for safely starting and maintaining an exercise routine to support healthy ageing.
COVID-19 Information for workplaces - General
This resource provides guidance on minimising the spread of COVID-19, including aged care settings. It outlines vaccine information, risk assessments, physical distancing, hygiene and rapid antigen testing in the workplace. It also contains key resources such as signage, posters and translated information.