Assessment management services for performance of residential aged care recipient classification assessments

A new aged care classification system, the Australian National Aged Care Classification (AN-ACC), has been developed by the Australian Health Services Research Institute (AHSRI), University of Wollongong, in consultation with clinical experts in health and aged care.

The complete AN-ACC system comprises a provider funding model, care recipient classification model and care recipient Assessment model. The Australian Government is committed to implementing the Assessment model and classification model elements of the AN-ACC system in the residential aged care sector from 1 March 2021. The Australian Government has not yet decided to implement the funding element of the model.

Through this RFT process independent assessors employed by one or more contracted assessment management organisations will use the AN-ACC assessment tool to complete up to 300,000 assessments of the functional capacities of residential aged care recipients in aged care homes during the period 1 March 2021 to 28 February 2022 (with possibility of extension of time to complete to 30 June 2022 if necessary).

Contracted entities will provide Assessment management services for the trial, specifically to:

• attract, recruit, onboard and retain suitably qualified and experienced Registered Nurses, Physiotherapists and Occupational Therapists as assessors and provide evidence to the Department that each assessor has, and maintains, unrestricted Australian Health Practitioner Agency (AHPRA) registration and meets other essential Credentials

• liaise with residential aged care providers to schedule Assessments (as assigned to entities by the Department) and to ensure assessors complete Assessments using the AN-ACC assessment tool and supporting ICT within the Department’s timeframes for Assessment performance as notified at the date of assignment

• develop and operate a formal, proactive and continuous improvement-focused Clinical Support Framework (above any ordinary ‘quality assurance’ activity) to support assessors in the field and to ensure consistency of practice, and

• provide operational information to the Department through regular program management meetings and reporting products, as required by the Department.

The Department requires up to an estimated 300,000 Assessments to be completed from 1 March 2021 to 28 February 2022, approximately distributed as follows:

• 78 per cent of Assessments in metropolitan areas

• 21 per cent of Assessments in regional areas

• 1 per cent of Assessments in remote areas.

Tenderers are invited to bid to perform either: the entirety of the Assessments; or to perform a portion of the Assessments by nominating particular Aged Care Planning Regions in which they wish to perform Assessments.

A detailed estimate of the Assessments to be performed, distributed by Aged Care Planning Regions, is provided in Schedule 1 of the RFT. Aged Care Planning Region maps are available at the following link: https://www.health.gov.au/resources/collections/2018-aged-care-planning-region-maps