New NDIS Registration Toolkit for Residential Aged Care Providers

The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission (NDIS Commission) has released a comprehensive toolkit for Residential Aged Care (RAC) providers to assist with their NDIS registration.

Since 1 December 2020, all aged care providers that support NDIS participants in RACs have been required to become registered NDIS providers. Some RAC providers supporting only a few NDIS participants were granted a registration renewal extension and will need to submit their application to the NDIS Commission by 1 December 2022.

Two years ago, we reported that work was underway to identify alignment between the NDIS Practice Standards and the Aged Care Quality Standards, in order to inform guidance material for RAC providers preparing for and undergoing an NDIS audit. This toolkit has FINALLY been released. Here are some of the highlights.

RAC Provider Toolkit

• Part A: Common Terms: This table clarifies terms that are used in the aged care and NDIS sectors that have common meanings or roles. For example, Aged Care Consumer vs NDIS Participant and Aged Care Quality and Safety (ACQS) Commission vs NDIS Commission. If you are looking to expand some of your existing documentation to be inclusive of NDIS participants, this guide could help streamline that process.
• Part B: Overview of NDIS Registration: As the name implies, this resource provides an overview of the NDIS registration process. Want to know the who, what, where, why, and how? This resource takes you through all the steps of registration and your key compliance areas. It could be a useful tool in identifying areas for staff training.
• Part C: Comparison of ACQS and NDIS Audit and Registration Processes: This tool highlights all the key differences between aged care and NDIS in terms of standards, code of conduct, audit process, sampling, audit rating, and costs. I could see this tool being useful in identifying and briefing your executive and board on key areas of change for RACs.
• Part D: Steps in the audit and registration process: This tool gives you a higher-level overview of the key steps of the registration process, with links to further information. I found it succinct and easier to navigate than Part B.
  Part D also includes a link to the modified NDIS registration pathway for eligible RAC providers to be assessed against the NDIS Practice Standards through a review of their most recent Aged Care Standards audit. Some providers may also be required to undergo an assessment against additional modules of the NDIS Practice Standards, depending on the nature of the supports they provide, particularly for specialist behaviours support, implementing behaviour supports plans, and high-intensity activities.
• Part E: Comparison of ACQS and NDIS Standards: This section explains the differences and similarities between the ACQS and NDIS standards. It provides a high-level overview of commonalities and differences, as well as a colour-coded chart to satisfy the quality nerds among us. If you want to go deeper into the comparison, check out the concordance table in Part H.
• Part F: Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): As the name suggests, this section offers FAQs from RACs on the NDIS registration process. Want to know why there are two separate audit processes for aged care accreditation and NDIS registration? Find out here (though satisfaction with answers is not guaranteed).
• Part G: Glossary: This is an NDIS dictionary of some of the Commission’s favourite terms. Not sure what “Agency-managed” or “proportionality” means? Start here!
• Part H: Concordance Table for RAC Providers: This table compares the two sets of standards and is also a gap analysis tool. This is probably the place to start if you want to self-assess the evidence your organisation has against the standards.
• Part I: Evidence Guide for RAC Providers: This toolkit really is the gift that keeps on giving! The NDIS Evidence Guide gives examples of evidence that could be used to meet the NDIS Practice Standards. I suggest printing this and keeping it handy to give you ideas while you are completing the concordance tool.

I feel like I am throwing in a free set of steak knives now, but there are also plenty of on-demand webinars to support registration. So, if you are feeling a bit lost on how to navigate the toolkit, you could start there. They are actually pretty short and straightforward-ish, which is always good when you have a job to do!

Provider webinars 

• Module 1: Accessing the NDIS Commission Portal
• Module 2: Completing online Registration Renewal
• Module 3: Selecting an Approved Quality Auditing Body
• Module 4: Stage 1 (Desktop) Audit
• Module 5: Stage 2 (Onsite) audit
• Module 6: Registration Decision and Compliance
• How to use the Concordance Table
• How to use the Evidence Guide
• How to use the Toolkit

I highly recommend setting aside a good chunk of time to work out how each of these resources can best assist you. DSC has worked with a number of RACs in their transition, and these tools could have saved A LOT of time and heartache earlier on! So, get online, have a play, and let us know what you think!