Put in place a feedback* and complaints* management system*.

Make sure your feedback* and complaints* management system* outlines:

• clear and documented processes*, roles and responsibilities* on how feedback* and complaints* are:
  • received
  • registered and acknowledged
  • recorded
  • investigated
  • responded to
  • managed
  • resolved
  • learnt from to improve care and services.
• how to encourage and support older people and workers to provide feedback* and make complaints*. For example, by providing access to language services and advocates.
• how you keep feedback* and complaints* confidential. This needs to be in line with your information management system* (Outcome 2.7). Make sure:
  • older people or workers do not face retribution because they give feedback* or raise a complaint*
  • you make efforts to reduce administrative burden 
  • you resolve all feedback* and complaints*
  • you identify any patterns or trends.
• how stakeholders can:
  • escalate feedback* and complaints*. This is so that you can deal with feedback* in a timely* way.
  • access information about external complaint*s and feedback* mechanisms, including the Serious Incident Response Scheme (SIRS)
  • provide positive feedback*. This can encourage and strengthen good practices they observe.
• what feedback* or complaints* workers need to record. Make sure the system describes any situations where you don’t need to record feedback*. For example, if the older person chooses not to have the feedback recorded.
• any feedback* or complaints* that you need to respond to. Include:
  • who you should involve in this process*
  • timeframes
  • situations where you need an investigation, such as after an incident* or near miss* (Outcome 2.5).
• how you discuss and resolve complaints*. You should do this in consultation with the person who made the complaint*. Communicate with older people in a way that meets their needs and preferences. Consider their:
  • spoken language
  • culture
  • medical conditions, including cognitive ability
  • needs and preferences (Outcomes 1.1 and 3.3).
• how you analyse and resolve complaints* and feedback*. Focus on identifying any trends or organisation-wide issues during performance monitoring. For example, aspects of care which aren’t delivered well may suggest that your organisation needs additional worker* training (Outcome 2.3).

The feedback* and complaints* management system* should also provide guidance and information on how to practise open disclosure* (Outcome 2.3) when things go wrong.

Use your feedback* and complaints* management system* to manage and respond to feedback and complaints.

Have mechanisms to provide feedback* and complaint*s that work well for older people, their family, carers and workers. Consider the language and communication needs and preferences of older people (Outcome 1.1). These can include:

• the process* to escalate complaints*
• feedback* forms
• the Serious Incident Response Scheme (SIRS) process*
• through a Consumer Advisory Body.

If you find issues or ways you can improve through this process, you need to address them. If things go wrong, you need to:

• practise open disclosure* (Outcome 2.3). This means being open about what has gone wrong. Share what went wrong with older people, their family and carers.
• put in place strategies to mitigate the risk of things going wrong again.

Look for trends to find organisation-wide issues and ways for the service to improve. Do this as part of your broader performance monitoring activities (Outcome 2.3).

Have a feedback* register to monitor feedback* and complaints*.

Put in place strategies to help workers use the feedback* and complaint*s management system* well.

Put in place policies* and procedures* that support and encourage using your feedback* and complaint* s system*. Make sure these are:

• current and informed by the latest contemporary, evidence-based practices*
• regularly* reviewed
• clear and accessible for workers and relevant people (Outcome 2.7).

Provide workers with guidance and training on how to use the feedback* and complaints* management system*. This needs to be in line with:

• the organisation’s policies* and procedures*
• worker's roles and responsibilities*.

Make sure workers understand:

• their role in the feedback* and complaints* management system*
• how to use the system* to manage feedback* and complaints* you receive when delivering care and services to older people.

The guidance for Outcomes 2.8 and 2.9 has more information on workforce* planning and human resource management.

Monitor how well you use the feedback* and complaint*s management system*.

Regularly* review your feedback and complaints* management system* to make sure it works well. Look for ways to improve the system*.

To check if you’re managing feedback* and complaints* well, you can review:

• older people’s care and service documents (Outcome 3.1)
• complaints and feedback*
• incident* information (Outcome 2.5)
• worker* performance and how well they’re using the feedback* and complaints* management system*. You can do this through quality assurance and system* reviews (Outcome 2.9).
• feedback meeting minutes and records

Also, talk with older people, their families and carers about the care and services they receive (Outcome 2.1). For example, ask them if they know about the ways they can make a complaint* or give feedback* on their care and services. These conversations can then inform continuous improvement* actions and planning (Outcome 2.1).

You will know things are going well if older people say that they are confident that:

• their complaints had been closed out appropriately in a timely manner
• they feel heard.

The guidance for Outcome 2.3 has more information on monitoring the quality system*.