The Veterans Affairs Department has been urged to lift its game and fix bureaucratic bottlenecks in claims processing in order to help prevent suicides among ex-soldiers.
While the majority of claims were meeting adequate time frames, in a minority of cases inefficient handling was having a significant impact on veterans, a new report from the auditor-general says.
The department's focus on monitoring the median and average time taken to process claims does not provide a complete picture of performance and does not address critical reputational and welfare risks, the report said.
Weaknesses in managing records and delays in receiving information from medical specialists needed addressing.
Eighty-three veterans took their own lives between 2005 and 2015.
Between 2000 and 2016, 118 full-time serving defence force members were suspected or confirmed to have ended their own life.
The department supported 165,000 veterans and more than 125,000 dependents at a cost of $12 billion in 2016-17.
The department has agreed with the audit's six recommendations.
Veterans Affairs Minister Darren Chester and department secretary Liz Cosson said the improvements were all about putting veterans and their families first and eliminating unnecessary delays and frustrations.
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