Why Feedback Management is important in Retirement Villages

By Jodie Prosser, Retirement Living Executive

As the regulatory focus intensifies on enhancing complaint and dispute management in retirement villages, it is crucial for village operators to prioritise feedback management.

Meeting regulatory obligations and building trust with residents is essential for long-term success and establishing a good reputation for retirement villages. This is where our Retirement Living Software comes into play.

Regulatory focus on feedback management

In various Australian states, there has been a distinct desire to improve complaint and dispute management processes in retirement village operations. The ACT Government has explored the idea of establishing an independent Ombudsman, specifically dedicated to resolving disputes between residents and operators. Additionally, the Victorian Government has proposed stronger dispute resolution processes, mandatory collection and reporting of complaints and disputes, and even the enforcement of fines for non-compliance. Western Australia and South Australia have also expressed the need to enhance dispute resolution processes and increase the professional standards of village staff.

Furthermore, the New South Wales Government has recently shed light on resident complaints, calling for greater transparency and accountability. They have proposed the creation of a public register that would highlight the existence of residents' committees, the number of complaints in the past year, and the presence of a dispute resolution system.

Impact of consumer complaints

The Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI) has supported the call for a retirement village ombudsman to address resident disputes. The increasing complexity and time-consuming nature of complaints and disputes have also been acknowledged by the DCM Institute. Their research highlighted that Village Managers find dealing with these issues draining, which may be a contributing factor to a significant number of them seeking alternative employment outside the sector.

Additionally, new service providers like Seniors Living Mediation are emerging to assist operators in developing appropriate strategies and mediation activities for effective dispute resolution.

The impact of complaints and disputes in retirement villages is far-reaching. It not only affects staff morale, resident satisfaction, and the confidence of residents and their families in their choice to live in a village but also influences the overall culture and reputation of the village, the board, and the organisation itself. Moreover, these issues can shape the perception of the government, politicians, media, and the broader public towards the retirement living industry.

Given these expectations and the importance of managing feedback, complaints, and disputes, retirement living operators must have the right systems and processes in place. This includes having a system that allows residents to provide feedback or lodge complaints easily, capturing and maintaining visibility of feedback and complaints, acknowledging, and responding promptly, automating necessary actions, providing a workflow for investigation and response, and feeding into continuous improvement planning.

The solution

Our retirement living software offers all these essential features through its Feedback & Quality Management tool. It enables operators to proactively handle feedback, complaints, and disputes by promoting regular and transparent communication. This two-way communication platform helps identify and address issues or concerns before they escalate into formal complaints.

The Feedback dashboard in the system streamlines feedback and complaints, providing operators with visibility over the resolution process and outcomes. With this tool, senior leaders can stay informed or intervene at various stages of complaint management, ensuring efficient and satisfactory resolution.

If you want to learn more about how our software can assist you in increasing trust with residents and fulfilling your complaint and dispute management obligations, contact us today!