Temporary Employment Register - Quality Assessment and Monitoring Group – Senior Investigations Officer 

APS6

$89,394 - $100,849

Non-Ongoing – Full Time

Work Regulation & Incident Investigations Team (WRIIT)

Adelaide SA, Brisbane QLD, Canberra ACT, Melbourne (Box Hill) VIC, Perth WA and Sydney (Parramatta) NSW 

Are you looking to make a real difference to the quality of care provided to older people, like travel and thrive in a varied and challenging work environment? We have exciting employment opportunities for the right people to register for our Temporary Employment Register (TER) and join a highly skilled team of field officers who are responsible conducting investigations into suspected non-compliance with worker regulation legislation and quality of care principles relating to reportable incidents.

The TER assists the Commission to access appropriately skilled and experienced individuals for temporary positions (up to a possible maximum period of 2 years) and is open for candidates to register an interest in temporary employment. 

Employment at the Commission offers generous employment conditions and career pathways both internally and externally, supported through our commitment to the development of staff capabilities that are sought after by other public sector regulators.  

Candidates should be aware this is a register only and that you will only be contacted regarding your application if a vacancy arises that matches your skills, qualifications and/or experience. 

About the Commission

The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission (the Commission) was formed on 1 January 2019. The role of the Commission is to protect and enhance the safety, health, wellbeing, and quality of life of people receiving aged care. 

The Commission is the national end-to-end regulator of aged care services and the primary point of contact for consumers and providers in relation to quality and safety. Our vision is to support a world-class aged care system driven by empowered consumers who enjoy the best possible quality of life. 

We aim to build confidence and trust in aged care, empower consumers, promote best practice service provision, promote quality standards, and hold providers to account for their performance against the expected standards of care. We seek to promote an aged care system that develops safer systems of care, inculcates a culture of safety and quality, and learns from mistakes, while providing the oversight that can assure the community that aged care services are operating as they should, including working on continuous improvement.  

Meet some of our people and learn more about the Commission and our Regulatory Strategy on our website www.agedcarequality.gov.au. 

About the Quality Assessment and Monitoring Group

The Quality Assessment and Monitoring Group (The Group) is responsible for the effective delivery of quality assessment and monitoring of approved provider compliance with the Aged Care Quality Standards, undertaking accreditation and reaccreditation audits of residential aged care services, completion of quality audits of Home Services, and undertaking investigations into triaged reports of serious incidents in aged care services.  

The Group is led by an Executive Director and leadership team within a single Commission operating model, and includes staff located across Australia, group functions include four regional teams undertaking assessment and monitoring against the Aged Care Quality Standards, an investigations team and national teams responsible for worker regulation and incident investigations,  quality audits of Home Services, and the delivery of national reaccreditation services supplied by third parties, and program performance.  

Senior Investigations Officers

Senior Investigations Officer are regulatory officers who conduct field-based investigations into suspected non-compliance with worker regulation legislation and quality of care principles relating to reportable incidents including the use of restrictive practices under the Serious Incidents Response Scheme (SIRS). 

Position duties include, but are not limited to: 

• Plan, participate in, and lead investigations into non-compliance with the Aged Care Act 1997 (Aged Care Act), relating to the SIRS program and worker regulation reforms (code of conduct). 
• Conduct risk assessments in line with the Commission’s risk matrix to identify ongoing risks to aged care consumers based upon alleged/identified non-compliance. 
• Investigations will include review of information and documents, interviewing staff, consumers, their representatives and other relevant persons, observations on site, underpinned by the Australian Government Investigations Standards. 
• Collect, secure, and manage confidential information and evidential material gathered during investigations and other compliance activities. 
• Produce high quality investigations reports to help guide regulatory responses, and support reasons for decisions on remedial actions required. 
• Work collaboratively with legal officers and other advisors in the development of compliance and enforcement responses and briefs of evidence. 
• Prepare briefs of evidence to support administrative action, civil proceedings and criminal prosecutions. 
• Work collaboratively with other agencies or authorities and where appropriate refer matters to them under the relevant jurisdictional law. 
• Participate in the delivery of education opportunities to inform and educate aged care providers and clients and the public about the Commissioner’s functions and the requirements of relevant legislation and rules. 
• Provide coaching, mentoring and guidance to other Commission staff and contribute to a learning culture where expertise can be appropriately shared. 
• Undertake activities using regulatory powers outlined in the Aged Care Quality and Safety Act 2018, the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission Rules 2018 (Commission Rules) and the Regulatory Powers (Standard Provisions) Act 2014.
• Publicly represent the commission, acting professionally (including adhering to APS Values & Code of Conduct and the Commission’s Quality Assessor Code of Conduct) and operating within the boundaries of organisational processes and legal and public policy directions.

What skills and capability we are looking for 

• The ability to interpret legislation. 
• Broad understanding of contemporary regulatory processes, inclusive practices and experience in leading investigations. 
• Investigation skills including the ability to exercise regulatory powers, identify non-compliance, and gather, analyse and present evidence. 
• The capacity to develop sound working relationships to understand consumer risk and escalate issues accordingly. 
• Excellent attention to detail, strong written and verbal communication skills, and adept time management skills, including the ability to produce quality reports. 
• Ability to identify opportunities for continuous improvement to achieve quality outcomes. 
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills and the ability to establish and maintain professional relationships with key external stakeholders 
• The ability and the confidence to make sound judgements based on thorough research, problem solving, innovation and evidence-based practice, to achieve the objectives of the Commission. 
• Ability to work collaboratively with others to focussing on the operational priorities and strategic direction of the Commission 
• The ability to maintain personal resilience and wellbeing, and work flexibly in a changing environment 

Desirable qualifications or experience – one or more of the following: 

• Understanding of the Australian aged care system and the regulatory legislation underpinning it.
• Experience of working in a regulatory environment
• Certificate IV or Diploma in Government (Investigations) or equivalent

Position Notes

Salary offer will be between $89,394 - $100,849 per annum. In addition, 15.4% superannuation will be paid. 

Non-ongoing opportunity will be offered for a fixed term. Opportunities will be offered for varying periods up to 12 months with a possibility of extension to a maximum of two years.

Eligibility Requirements

• Only candidates who hold Australian citizenship can apply.

• Successfully completing a national police check 

• Providing evidence of having had a seasonal influenza vaccination and COVID-19 Vaccination (Field Staff Only) 

• A valid drivers licence

Travel Expectations

Extensive travel within each state is an inherent requirement of the role. Travel requirements involve overnight travel each week or fortnight. Applicable travel expenses are covered under the Commission’s travel policy. 

A current driver’s licence is essential to support the travel expectations of the role.

Contact

For further information, please contact the QAM Executive Support, Governance and Workplace Planning Team at QAM.workforceplanning@agedcarequality.gov.au.

Please contact our recruitment team on (02) 9633 3262 or recruitment@agedcarequality.gov.au for assistance with accessing our website or with lodging your application.  

Diversity and Inclusion

The diversity of our staff is very important to us. We welcome and actively encourage applications from all Australian citizens to achieve a workforce that reflects our community. 

The Commission recognises the richness of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and the unique knowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander employees bring to our workplace, policy development and service delivery. We welcome and actively encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in line with our commitments in our Reconciliation Action Plan. 

Further information

For further information about the Aged Care Quality & Safety Commission, office locations and other related resources, please visit https://www.agedcarequality.gov.au. 

For more information on the Australian Public Service, please visit http://www.apsc.gov.au/publications-and-media/current-publications/cracking-the-code/factsheet-4 and http://www.apsc.gov.au/publications-and-media/current-publications/cracking-the-code.

How to apply

Expressions of interest close 11:59PM (AEDT/AEST) on Sunday 30 June 2024.  

Applications can be submitted below.