Quality audits play a crucial role in ensuring that providers of services and supports to NDIS participants meet the required standards for safe and high-quality service delivery. In Australia, all NDIS providers must undergo a quality audit as part of their application for registration or renewal with the NDIS Commission.
The NDIS Practice Standards are used as a benchmark to assess providers’ compliance with quality and safety requirements. An independent, approved quality auditor will evaluate each organisation against the applicable components of the NDIS Practice Standards that align with the services and supports they deliver. The audit is conducted taking into consideration the size, scope, and service delivery risks of each business.
There are two types of quality audits that providers can undergo: verification and certification. The NDIS Commission will advise each provider of the type of audit they require based on their registration group(s).
Verification Audits
Verification audits are usually for providers who deliver lower risk or lower complexity supports and services. These providers are typically already subject to professional regulation as a requirement of doing business through professional bodies such as the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA). Verification audits involve a desktop review of the required documentary evidence outlined for each profession in the Verification Module. Providers must provide evidence of relevant qualifications, expertise and experience, incident management processes/policies, complaints management processes/policies, and risk management processes/policies.
Certification Audits
Certification audits are for providers who deliver more complex or higher risk supports and services. Certification audits involve an assessment of providers against the NDIS Practice Standards, which may include assessment against the core module and any supplementary module relevant to the type of support they deliver. The assessment includes core capabilities such as risk management, delivery of supports, the delivery environment, and governance and operational management. Providers delivering services and supports within the High Intensity Daily Personal Activities registration group will be assessed against the High Intensity Skills Descriptors. Certification audits include document reviews, site visits, and interviews with NDIS workers and participants.
It is the responsibility of each provider to engage an approved quality auditor to assess their compliance with the NDIS Practice Standards. As the NDIS market develops, the NDIS Commission will continue to monitor the effectiveness of profession-specific regulatory frameworks to ensure safe and high-quality services for NDIS participants.
