Five Essential Tips for Navigating Aged Residential Care Audits in New Zealand
Instilling a workplace culture where the mindset is, “Consider every day as if it were an audit day,” fosters continuous readiness. Preparing for an audit in aged residential care can be challenging. In New Zealand, these audits are essential for certification and maintaining high standards of care. To ensure a smooth audit process, following a few key tips can make a significant difference.
Understand the Standards
The Ngā Paerewa Health and Disability Services Standards set by the New Zealand Ministry of Health outline the expectations for service delivery in aged care facilities. Familiarize yourself and your staff with these standards to ensure your services align with regulatory requirements. Pay special attention to Subsection 1.1.3, which focuses on the service environment, Sub section 2.1 Governance, Subsection 3.2 My Pathway to Wellbeing, Subsection 3.4 My Medication, Subsection 5.3, which pertains to Antimicrobial Stewardship and Subsection 6.1 Relating to Restraint elimination, as these are often areas of focus during audits.
Engage Your Team
Preparing for an audit is a team effort. Engage staff across all levels by organizing training sessions that cover audit processes, standards, and the importance of compliance. Create a culture of continuous improvement where staff feel empowered to identify and report potential areas for improvement. Regular staff meetings to discuss audit readiness and to address any concerns can also be beneficial.
Conduct Internal Audits
Internal audits are a powerful tool for identifying potential non-compliance areas before the official audit. These should mimic the actual audit process as closely as possible, covering documentation, resident care, staff qualifications, and facility maintenance. Use the findings from these internal audits to implement corrective actions, thereby improving your facility’s compliance and care quality.
Documentation and Record Keeping
Impeccable documentation and record-keeping practices are vital for a successful audit. Ensure all resident care plans, staff training records, incident reports, and policies and procedures are up-to-date, easily accessible, and in compliance with the standards. Implementing a digital documentation system can improve efficiency and accuracy in record-keeping.
Prepare for the Audit Day
On the day of the audit, ensure your facility is clean, organized, and operating smoothly. Brief your staff on what to expect and how to interact with the auditors. It’s also important to have a designated person to accompany auditors, providing them with necessary documentation and answering questions as needed. Remember, auditors are not there to find faults but to ensure that your facility meets the required standards for providing safe and quality care.
If there are projects, you have completed that you would like the auditors to consider for a Continuous improvement rating. Discuss these at the introduction meeting and provide the auditors with the details of the project, what was implemented, in what timeframe, and the evaluation of the effectiveness of changes implemented on improving outcomes for residents.
While the audit process can be challenging, viewing it as an opportunity for improvement rather than an obstacle can change the experience significantly. By understanding the standards, engaging your team, conducting internal audits, maintaining impeccable records, and preparing for the audit day, your aged residential care facility can navigate the audit process with confidence. Remember, the goal is to ensure that residents receive the highest quality of care, and these audits are a means to that end.