Quality assessors

We use registered quality assessors to assess aged care providers against the Aged Care Quality Standards. Assessors also provide education and promote improvement.

They must follow the quality assessor obligations.

View our current register of quality assessors.

Quality assessor obligations

Assessors must:

adhere to the Quality assessor code of conduct
complete any mandatory training required by the Commissioner
complete at least 15 hours of professional development annually as the Commissioner approves, including any mandatory training
conduct at least 2 comprehensive performance assessments or 4 assessment contacts as a quality assessor in the 12 months before the expiration of the registration
inform the Commissioner if convicted of a serious offence (murder or sexual assault or convicted of and sentenced to imprisonment for any other form of assault)
comply with the Commission’s Vaccination Policy
comply with the Quality Assessor Conflict of Interest Policy
have no current parallel engagement with the aged care or health care industry* unless otherwise approved due to circumstances specified by the Commissioner
remain employed or under a contractual obligation to perform the duties of a quality assessor for the Commission.

*Parallel engagement or parallel aged care or health care industry engagement means current:

ongoing, non-ongoing, temporary or casual employment in the aged care industry
provision of consultancy, advice, coaching, expertise or training within the aged care industry
ongoing, non-ongoing, temporary or casual employment in the health care industry where the predominant focus is on supporting aged care
ongoing, non-ongoing, temporary or casual employment in another industry where the predominant focus is on supporting aged care
ongoing, non-ongoing, temporary or casual employment with a state or territory government in a role that supports or is related to aged care
occupancy of a position on a board or governing body of an aged care provider
holding individual membership of an aged care peak or representative body.

Quality assessor code of conduct

Quality assessors must comply with the assessor's code of conduct as follows.

I will:

act professionally and accurately report findings in a consistent and unbiased manner
perform quality assessor functions and exercise of powers in accordance with the Commission procedures and policies
maintain professional standards of dress and behaviour, and wear my registration badge when on Commission assignments
respect the in-house rules of any organisation I visit, and keep my mobile phone turned off or silent during all visits
maintain my competence and knowledge of contemporary practice
not misrepresent my own or any other individual’s qualifications, competence or experience, nor undertake auditing work beyond my expertise
disclose to the Commission any current or prior working or personal relationships that may be seen as a conflict of interest or that may influence my judgment
not enter into any activity that may be in conflict with the best interests of the Commission, or that would prevent the performance of my duties in an objective manner
adhere to the requirements of the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission Act 2018 and the Privacy Act 1988 and not discuss or disclose any information relating to an assessment of a provider's performance unless required to by law
not represent any other business interests while conducting assignments for the Commission
not use my registration as an assessor to promote any business in which I may have an interest
not accept any inducement, commission, gift or any other benefit from any interested party
not communicate false, erroneous or misleading information that may compromise the integrity of any assessment of a provider's performance
not act in any way that would prejudice the reputation of the Commission, assessors or the process of assessing a provider's performance
cooperate fully with any enquiry in the event of any complaint about my performance as an assessor or any alleged breach of this code.

Conflict of interest

Assessors must disclose and manage any real or perceived conflicts of interest that may influence or be perceived to influence decisions or advice.

Read our Quality assessor conflict of interest policy (PDF 891 KB).

Becoming a registered assessor

Assessors must be registered under the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission Rules 2018.

To become a registered quality assessor, you must:

be successful in a quality assessor recruitment or procurement exercise (find current vacancies on our Careers page)
submit a valid registration application (we give you an application pack after recruitment)
complete our Quality Assessor Training Program (QATP) and orientation program.

Read our Quality assessor registration information sheet.

We don’t guarantee to give work to all registered assessors.

QATP and orientation program

These programs train assessors to determine the performance of aged care services. You must do a competency-based assessment before completing the QATP.

Pre and post-course activities and on-the-job training support the programs.

Only we run these programs and only after recruitment.