The Government is trying again to measure ‘quality’ in residential aged care.

The Australian Aged Care Quality Agency has appointed the La Trobe University to develop an interview tool that can be used for nursing home residents and their families as part of the accreditation process.

The target is 50,000 interviews a year.

CEO Nick Ryan previously announced in August that AACQA would begin to include the first-hand experience of residents in its reports from 2017.

The Agency currently interviews at least 10% of the 190,000 aged care residents and their families about their experiences.

The researchers will be developing and testing a set of structured questions to use in each site audit, with a new consumer report expected to be ready by June 30 this year.

It’s another sign an aged care ratings system could be on the way for the sector.