Category: Integrated Care

Posted on

Elephant in the room?

So, what is the elephant in the room with aged care at the moment?

In a report released Friday 17 August 2018 that showed a recent increase in home care funding for elderly care recipients, there was a worrying trend in demand versus ability to provide that needed care.

That is, despite the growth in older people desiring home care services, the number of home care packages assigned (or available) is simply not keeping up with demand.

At 31 March 2018, according to figures only released on 17 August 2018, the queue waiting to receive a package had risen to 108,456 people.  That is an increase of 3,854 on those waiting at 31 December 2017.  Not only that , but just over half of all those in the queue have been assigned a package at a lower level than their needs require.  Remember this is all based on the Australian Government’s own approved needs assessment, and allocation of packages.

Contemporaneously we have demographers projecting the number of residential aged care places required to be built/developed is now at about 75,000 by 2025.  That is only eight years away.

Continue reading “Elephant in the room?”

Posted on

Minimum – What Ratios?

I have never been a great advocate for regulated minimum staffing ratios, but prefer regulation of the things that are really important around provision of care services to the people, our care recipients.  If you like, having enough of the right people at the right time, and not just to fulfil a compliance requirement around the number of pairs of hands.

In completing this Review my own views around staffing, quality of care, industrial considerations and the like have changed – for the better.  It remains to be seen if those with the capacity to make an even more profound difference to improve care outcomes for frail, vulnerable, mainly elderly recipients of care – the Australian Government and Parliament – will actually choose to support those whom we serve.

Introduction

It seems that in Australia rarely a month goes by where the public is not informed of another aged care failing.  There is wide spread public perception of a lack of care and low quality of life for residents within the aged care system.  The call for greater regulation of minimum staffing standards and additional funds to meet them is prominent but seems to fall on deaf ears of the Australian Government.

Without residential aged care provision, residents would likely be inpatients in State based hospitals at several times the daily cost of care of a residential aged care facility.  However, the proportion of funds spent on care and service provision should be acquitted on what really matters – the care of people.

Keep reading >>

Download the full report >>

Posted on

Reflections

In late January and early February 2018 I had the privilege of joining the Global Conference on Integrated Care (“GCIC”) in Singapore.  I am delighted to say that for me this was the most beneficial conference that I have attended since my re-connection to the aged care sector in August 2016.

Every nation represented at the Conference shared information about their significantly growing healthcare budget and rapidly ageing population. All nations have health and aged care systems that were created for a previous generation. They are not designed for the massive ageing population growth that require more and more health, social and aged care services.

As often as I remind others of the difficulties aged care providers, their workforce and clients are confronted with, I remind myself that we belong to a bigger system of health and social care provision.

Many parts of that system attract what seems to us, by comparison, to be outrageous funding.  Maintenance care only in a hospital costs approximately $1,200 per day.  A day of care in an intensive care unit costs $6,000 plus per day.  That is not to say of course that these services are not important and desperately needed.

Continue reading “Reflections”