MOU supports greater transparency across aged care

In an effort to bolster greater accountability across aged care in Australia, a new memorandum of understanding (MOU) has been established.

The MOU is between the Office of the Inspector-General of Aged Care (Office) and the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission (Commission).

The Acting Inspector-General of Aged Care (Inspector-General), Ian Yates AM, welcomed the signing of the MOU, which will formalise the information-sharing process between the Commission and the Office. The MOU was signed in Adelaide at the Commission’s national conference, by the Acting Inspector-General and the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commissioner, Janet Anderson PSM.

The Inspector-General of Aged Care has oversight of the administration, regulation and funding of the aged care system and therefore the Office needs full access to a comprehensive suite of data about the performance of the entities it oversees.

While the Inspector-General has strong compulsory information-gathering powers under their legislation, the Office has sought to establish agreements to enable voluntary sharing of key information.

The Commission is one of the principal agencies of government over which the Inspector-General has oversight, and it has agreed to provide detailed, comprehensive information on its activities to the Office on a regular basis. The Inspector-General acknowledged this as a demonstration of the Commission’s own commitment to transparency and accountability.

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