Jo Lacy

Jo has a Bachelor of Nursing with extensive experience in the acute and aged care sectors. Her roles have included managing service delivery for various hospitals and healthcare organisations. Her acute nursing experience includes medical/surgical specialities and high dependency nursing.   During this time she became actively involved in clinical education relating to the development and use of clinical pathways. In these positions she also participated in several cycles of ACHS/EQUIP accreditation and had responsibility for the planning and implementation of quality activities within a number of portfolios.

A growing interest in Quality Improvement prompted a transition to the Aged Care sector in 2000 when she trained as an Aged Care Quality Assessor and conducted accreditation audits on behalf of the Aged Care Standards and Accreditation Agency.

Jo has also worked with the Department of Health and Ageing as a Commonwealth Nursing Officer within the Quality Outcomes program. During this time she gained experience working within the Complaints, Compliance and Resident Classification Scale (RCS) programs. In these roles she provided both clinical and audit expertise in monitoring residential aged care provider’s compliance under the Aged Care Act 1997.

Additional roles have included employment as a Quality Coordinator, and as a Nurse Advisor (risk screening function) in medical clinics.

Jo’s roles with AHA include:

• Nursing consultant for the DVA Community Nursing Services review program
• Assessment of the quality of HACC Agencies against the National HACC Service Standards
• Consultant for the DHS Supported Residential Service Program (SRS) project: Development of a Risk Management Framework for Regulatory Monitoring and the Development of Associated Audit Tools and Processes
• Consultant for development of a training package for Aged Care Assessment Teams regarding their delegatory responsibilities under the Aged Care Act 1997.
• Consultant for project planning and implementation for the FaHCSIA project, which requires AHA to independently assess funded organisations against the Family Relationship Services Program (FRSP) Approval Requirements. This project involves consultation, liaison and the development and piloting of assessment tools and processes with a wide variety of community based organisations that provide services to clients under the FRSP.