Summary of Healthdirect Australia HCP Research

The following is a summary of the HCP research data as collected by Healthdirect Australia in 2017. The summary includes information about HCP consumers and providers, their satisfaction with the program, awareness and knowledge of reforms, changes to care delivery and perceptions of MAC support.

Providers

• 64% of providers reported that they were able to manage changes that were required to interact with consumers, with roughly 60% of providers reporting their ability to manage workforce, systems and process changes ‘fairly well.’
• 50% of organisations reported increased use of casual employees to cope with changes.
• A large percentage of providers (59%) expressed difficulty in understanding letters and printed resources provided by MAC to support consumers.
• 25% of providers reported their dissatisfaction with MAC and how they have been supported since the introduction of the Increasing Choice in Home Care reforms, with government-managed providers reporting the lowest level of satisfaction.
• Providers were most dissatisfied with the support by MAC to reduce the administrative burden on their businesses.
• Overall provider satisfaction in relation to MAC, specifically support regarding the aged care reforms, actioning package upgrades and the volume of new referrals was very low.

Consumers 

• 80% of consumers reported a high level of satisfaction with service expectation, the standard of services received as well as the suitability of services received.
• Consumers reported being most satisfied with MAC in regards arranging aged care assessments and providing information about fees and charges.
• Roughly 43% of consumers were not aware of the ‘Increasing Choice in Home Care’ reforms.
• 30% of consumers who reported that they were aware of and confidently understood the reforms were informed by a service provider.
• A large majority of consumers (68%) agreed that the reforms would improve the process of moving to a new provider however, a very low percentage (4%) of consumers reported a high likelihood of changing providers.
• Provider choice was most commonly influenced by personal recommendations via word-of-mouth and the practicality of service provider availability.

The report concludes that consumers who are receiving HCP are satisfied with their current services and service providers however both consumers and providers have reported that they are not adequately informed or supported by MAC in regards to the recent HCP reforms.

The full report is available from the Department of Health.