Jan McLucas (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Aged Care, Disabilities and Carers) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate take note of the document.

The 2005-06 annual report of the Commissioner for Complaints within the Aged Care Division of the Department of Health and Ageing is the last report by Mr Rob Knowles in that capacity. In his introduction to the report, Mr Knowles has made some very astute observations about the operation of the Office of the Commissioner for Complaints and about the operation of the Complaints Resolution Scheme, which it is his primary function to oversee. He says:

I have been surprised at the reluctance on the part of some people and organisations to enter into open and honest dialogue and to give others that which we would seek for ourselves.

He is making the point that the use of any complaints system should be seen by those in any sector as an opportunity for quality improvement. I commend him for that comment and encourage the sector to take heed of it. He goes on to say that, over the six years that he has been the Commissioner for Complaints, he has seen improvement in the sector but still sees a lot of room for improvement. If we have a sector that is robust enough to receive complaints as an opportunity rather than a threat, I think we go a long way towards having open dialogue, especially in an area like aged care, in which, as Commissioner Knowles says, we are working with some of the most vulnerable people in our society.

These people are vulnerable for a whole range of reasons. They are vulnerable because of their age and their family connections. They are vulnerable because potentially they have dementia and a limited ability to express their opinion. But one of the most significant points of vulnerability in an aged care facility is residents’ fear that, if they make a complaint about what is occurring in the facility, they may get kicked out. That is a situation any government would have to deal with. I think the aged care sector needs to strive to put in place a support structure that allows older persons to make their concerns known in a way they would feel comforted about. No-one likes to be told that what they have done is wrong or, perhaps, inappropriate, but we have to encourage the aged care sector to view the complaint-making process—when complaints are made legitimately—as an opportunity for quality improvement. Mr Knowles goes on to say:

In my view the current role of the commissioner is significantly limited.

We know that has been the case for some time, and we also know that Commissioner Knowles has been making that complaint for some time. We know that the former minister heard that complaint from the commissioner about the capacity of his office to deal with complaints and the structure of the complaints system, but it is only very recently, and only as a result of the horrific stories that we heard in February this year, that the current minister has responded. I acknowledge that the minister has done that. The commissioner says he looks forward to the minister’s promised announcement prior to his retirement from office. He says:

I look forward to the changes being implemented in a way that addresses the limitations of the current scheme, and I am confident that my successor will receive the same support and loyalty that I have enjoyed over the last six years.

A complaints system should be seen as an opportunity for quality improvement. As I said, no-one wants to hear that they have done the wrong thing or made a mistake. But let us try to get past the defensive nature that some in the sector—and I underline the word ‘some’—have about receiving information that is not to their liking. These are the most vulnerable people in our society and we have to do everything that we can to ensure that their health, wellbeing and happiness are protected. I seek leave to continue my remarks later.

Leave granted; debate adjourned.