ACT worst in country for aged-care accreditation checks

It comes as a new report by the federal government revealed the ACT had the worst record in the nation for meeting aged care regulatory requirements.

The government report found just 64 per cent of ACT facilities subject to re-accreditation checks in 2019-20 were granted approval, well below the national rate of 89 per cent.

The next-lowest jurisdiction, the Northern Territory, had 83 per cent of its centres meet accreditation checks during the past financial year.

Of the ACT centres audited in 2019-20, just 43 per cent met clinical standards for personal and clinical care, while only 57 per cent met the requirement for services and support for daily living and 43 per cent for human resources.

Out of the eight standards laid out for accreditation, ACT facilities were the lowest out of any jurisdiction in five categories.

For every 1000 residents in aged care in the ACT, 30 complaints were made, which is below the national level of 33 complaints per 1000 residents.

Chief executive of Council on the Ageing ACT Jenny Mobbs said the results of the government audit were alarming, but not surprising.

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"There has been a struggle for quite a few years to get enough staff properly trained," Ms Mobbs said.

"It's very concerning, given we want the best care possible for older Canberrans and this is an issue."

Ms Mobbs said it was critical that recommendations from the royal commission into aged care be implemented to ensure better standards of care for residents.

"Canberra has an ageing population, so aged care is a challenge and I think we need to make sure that we see significant changes from the royal commission," she said.