Your rights
Receiving support at home doesn't mean giving up control of your life. These are the things you're entitled to expect, from us, and from any provider.
What you should expect
To be treated with respect
Your dignity, privacy and independence are respected, in how people speak to you, how they enter your home, and how personal care is handled.
To be involved in decisions
Decisions about your care are made with you, not for you. That includes what support you receive, when, and who provides it.
To understand what you're told
Information should be given in a way you can understand, in plain language, at a pace that suits you, and repeated if you need it.
To have your privacy protected
Your personal information is kept confidential and used only for the purposes you'd expect. See our Privacy Policy.
To express your preferences
Including preferences about language, culture, food, religious practice, family involvement and gender of support workers where relevant.
To raise concerns safely
You can complain, ask questions or push back, and it will not affect the care you receive. See Feedback & Complaints.
Advocacy, having someone in your corner
An advocate is someone who supports you to speak up, understand your options and be heard. They act on your instructions, in your interests.
You might want an advocate if
- You find it hard to raise a concern on your own
- You feel your preferences aren't being taken seriously
- You're not sure you understand your options
- You'd simply rather have support in a difficult conversation
Who can be an advocate
It can be a family member or friend you trust, or an independent advocate from a free advocacy service. Free aged care advocacy services operate across Australia and are independent of providers.
We support you having an advocate involved at any point, including in conversations with us. You don't need our permission, and you don't need to explain why.
Official sources and contact details
Your rights in aged care are set out formally by the Australian Government, and the regulator and national advocacy services can be contacted independently of any provider.
[CONTENT REQUIRED. VERIFIED REGULATOR & ADVOCACY CONTACT DETAILS] Phone numbers and links for the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission, My Aged Care and the national aged care advocacy service are not printed here yet, because publishing regulator contact details that later change would send people to the wrong place at the worst moment. Confirm the current details, then add them to app/config/helpful-links.php and they will appear on Helpful Links.
Need help in another language?
If English isn't your first language, or you're helping a family member who prefers to communicate in another language, let us know, contact our care team and we'll do our best to support you.
Something not right?
Tell us. We'd rather hear it than have you put up with it.