Learning from complaints involving carers – new HaDSCO publication and Carers WA conference presentation

Complaints lodged by carers are an important area of work for the Health and Disability Services Complaints Office (HaDSCO) and provide valuable feedback for health, mental health and disability service providers.

With National Carers Week happening from 16 to 22 October, HaDSCO has produced a new education resource about carers for health service providers - Learning from complaints involving carers.

The information sheet explores the issues behind the health service complaints that HaDSCO receives from carers and includes (de-identified) case studies to further illustrate the impact of these experiences on both the carer and the people they care for. The Learning from complaints involving carers education resource can be downloaded from our publications page.

Also in support of National Carers Week, HaDSCO’s Director Sarah Cowie will be delivering a presentation at the Carers WA conference 2022 on Friday 14 October at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre. The theme of the 2022 Carers Conference is ‘Inclusion, Innovation, Inspiration: Caring in the Community’ and HaDSCO is looking forward to sharing insights gained from managing complaints received from carers.

Carers are defined as people who provide unpaid care and support to family members and friends who have a disability, mental health condition, chronic condition, terminal illness, an alcohol or other drug issue or who are frail aged. However, many people may not identify themselves as a carer even though they may have significant care responsibilities.