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Contents
Annual Report 2023 - 2024
Number of public complaints reported
Gov SAfety is used by the department to report all customer feedback and complaints, with complaints recorded based on the categories in the table below.
Facilities
Centre-Based Facilities
| Sub-Categories | Number of Complaints 2023 – 2024 |
|---|---|
| Access | 1 |
| Quality | 4 |
Unit-Based Facilities
| Sub-Categories | Number of Complaints 2023 – 2024 |
|---|---|
| Room-Based Activities | 2 |
| Tuck Shop | 0 |
| Unit Supplies | 1 |
Interpersonal Relationships
Advocacy
| Sub-Categories | Number of Complaints 2023 – 2024 |
|---|---|
| Advocacy | 4 |
Domestic Visitors
| Sub-Categories | Number of Complaints 2023 – 2024 |
|---|---|
| Access to Phone Calls | 0 |
| Access to Visitors | 1 |
Kurlana Tapa Staff
| Sub-Categories | Number of Complaints 2023 – 2024 |
|---|---|
| Availability | 3 |
Other Resident
| Sub-Categories | Number of Complaints 2023 – 2024 |
|---|---|
| Other Resident | 8 |
Professional Visitors
| Sub-Categories | Number of Complaints 2023 – 2024 |
|---|---|
| Access to Phone Calls | 0 |
| Access to Visitors | 1 |
| Privacy | 1 |
Procedure / Process
Behaviour Support Framework
| Sub-Categories | Number of Complaints 2023 – 2024 |
|---|---|
| Consequences | 2 |
| Inequity | 0 |
| Phases | 3 |
| Protective Actions | 0 |
| Rewards and Incentives | 0 |
| Routines (lockdown) | 0 |
| Routines (other) | 3 |
Charter of Rights
| Sub-Categories | Number of Complaints 2023 – 2024 |
|---|---|
| Charter of Rights | 3 |
Communication
| Sub-Categories | Number of Complaints 2023 – 2024 |
|---|---|
| Quality | 15 |
| Timeliness / Responsiveness | 5 |
Professional Behaviour
Staff
| Sub-Categories | Number of Complaints 2023 – 2024 |
|---|---|
| Attitude | 68 |
| Competency | 15 |
| Conduct | 66 |
| Knowledge | 2 |
Service Delivery
Education
| Sub-Categories | Number of Complaints 2023 – 2024 |
|---|---|
| Access to Education | 1 |
| Quality of Education | 0 |
| Variety and Relevance of Courses Provided | 1 |
Food
| Sub-Categories | Number of Complaints 2023 – 2024 |
|---|---|
| Dietary Requirements (Medical and/or Cultural) | 1 |
| Quality | 8 |
| Quantity | 1 |
| Specific Meals | 6 |
| Variety | 3 |
Health and Wellbeing
| Sub-Categories | Number of Complaints 2023 – 2024 |
|---|---|
| Access to Medical Services | 4 |
| Access to Mental Health Services | 0 |
| Access to Physical Health Services | 1 |
| Disability-Related Concerns | 36 |
| Gender-Related Concerns | 0 |
Programs / Activities
| Sub-Categories | Number of Complaints 2023 – 2024 |
|---|---|
| Access to Programs and Activities | 32 |
| Appropriate Cultural Programs | 1 |
| Variety and Relevance of Programs Provided | 4 |
(Source: Gov SAfety)
Total Number of Complaints
Total Number of Complaints in the 2023 – 2024 financial year = 307
Additional Metrics
Additional Metrics | Total |
|---|---|
Number of positive feedback comments¹ | 219 |
Number of negative feedback comments² | 307 |
Total number of feedback comments | 526 |
% complaints resolved within policy timeframes | 64.5% |
¹ Total number of recorded compliments and suggestions
² Total number of recorded complaints
Data for previous years is available at: Data.SA - Annual Reporting - DHS Annual Report Data
Service Improvements
The following summarises actions by the department to improve its management of complaints, and service improvements resulting from complaints or client feedback in 2023-24:
- The announcement of improvements in State Government concessions or additional payments results in a high volume of customer contact. This can lead to customer complaints regarding lengthy wait times for the ConcessionsSA hotline. To avoid a similar situation relating to the once-off additional Cost of Living Concession payment, ConcessionsSA sought to mitigate the impact of calls by taking on additional staff and establishing a system to divert phone calls to a dedicated team.
- The Screening Transformation Program is using customer feedback to streamline the application and customer contact process through the design and implementation of a contemporary customer portal.
- Children and young people in custody at the Kurlana Tapa Youth Justice Centre provide feedback on programs and suggest activities of interest. In response to ongoing engagement with young people in Kurlana Tapa, a range of new programs and activities were undertaken in 2023-24. These included voluntary interdenominational church services, a sexual health program, The Village Podcasting (an extension of The Village African youth program using podcasting to explore topics such as culture, identity and masculinity), Therapy Dog Jayda, the Alpha Program (supporting young people to explore identity and their spirituality), East/West African cultural cooking program, a one-off mentoring session with the members of the Crows Football Team, a sports day and personal training.
In collaboration with the Restrictive Practice Unit, Disability Services rolled out training across the division to increase knowledge of restrictive practices and the reporting requirements under the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission. The sessions developed an understanding of what restrictive practices are, situations in which they are needed, and processes to reduce and eliminate the need for restrictive practices for individual clients.
Compliance Statement
Premier and Cabinet Circular 039 - compliance
The Department of Human Services is compliant with Premier and Cabinet Circular 039 - complaint management in the South Australian public sector.
Premier and Cabinet Circular 039 - communicating to employees
The Department of Human Services has communicated the content of PC 039 and the agency’s related complaints policies and procedures to employees.