At the Country to Coast, QLD Residential Aged Care Home (RACH) Networking Forum held on 12 November, the Healthy Ageing and End-of-Life Team delved deeper into the topic of digital health, including providing information on the strengthening of the Aged Care Quality Standards taking effect in 2025.
A focus of the forum was Standard Five “Clinical Care”, which requires aged care providers to work towards implementing a digital clinical information system.
Discussions also clarified the Aged Care Clinical Information System Standards (ACCISS), which outline minimum software requirements for aged care providers.
The team shared insights from the Digital Health Maturity Survey, completed by 39 homes across the Sunshine Coast, Wide Bay, and Central QLD regions. Results showed:
- 75% of homes are at intermediate levels of digital health maturity.
- Some homes have achieved an expert level, while others need additional support.
- While high scores were consistently reported for ‘readiness for digital systems’, a notable gap exists in ‘meaningful use,’ rated at 58%, indicating the need for improved understanding of how digital systems and digital literacy benefit care delivery.
The forum provided valuable resources, including:
- Standard 5: Clinical care – provider fact sheet
- Aged Care Clinical Information System Standards.
- Conformant clinical software products
Watch the Forum Recording: View here.