industry & reform
The year ahead
What will 2019 bring for
the aged care sector?
By Conor Burke
M
YEFO funding increases, the
workforce strategy taskforce,
aged care quality standards
legislation and, most importantly, public
awareness – these are some of the
positives to come from a tough 2018
for the aged care sector, according to
industry representatives.
Throughout the coming year, the Royal
Commission into Aged Care Quality and
Safety will take up a lot of headlines,
but for the peak bodies there are some
good news stories. ACSA chief executive
Pat Sparrow highlights her organisation’s
Humans of Aged Care storytelling
platform as a valuable insight into
the industry.
“We think it’s important for two
reasons,” Sparrow says. “One is just
because it does highlight the good, and
I think it’s going to be important through
this year as the media attention is likely
to be negative. We’re very keen to see
18 agedcareinsite.com.au
that there’s a balance in what’s presented
to the community because we believe
the majority of aged care is good and
that people need to hear those stories
so that aged care is not only associated
with those rare stories that the media are
focused on.”
ACSA’s workforce and industry
development unit will also be a big focus
for Sparrow in the coming year. This will
include recruitment, skills development
and innovation, as well as a continuing
focus on home care.
“There’s still in excess of 120,000 people
waiting for home care, which is just not
on,” Sparrow says.
LASA chief executive Sean Rooney
points to the aged care workforce strategy
as a significant step forward in improving
the sector, as well as the recent MYEFO
funding boost, albeit with a caveat.
“I think if you look at funding, there’s
obviously still ongoing funding issues –
notwithstanding that in the MYEFO there
was a significant amount of funds brought
back into the sector, so that’s a good
move, but it’s still way short of what’s
needed,” Rooney says.
LASA is continuing to encourage future
aged care workers with its NEXT GEN
initiative and is also looking to initiate
communication in the industry with a view
to constant improvement.
“We have established a new program
called Communities of Practice. This is
an online platform for our members to
engage, not only with LASA, but with each
other, regarding issues of operational
importance to them,” Rooney says.
“So, we’ve established a clinical
governance community of practice
where RNs and executives, and then care
workers, can convene to talk about key
issues around clinical care and clinical
governance.”
Maree McCabe, chief executive of
Dementia Australia, sees the emergence
of a unified, national Dementia Australia as
a big leap forward for elder care.
“After unifying state and territory bodies
into one entity, with our combined voice,
we are stronger and more able to raise
awareness of all forms of dementia and
the issues facing the more than 436,000
Australians who live with dementia,”
she says.