Significant changes need to be made within Australia’s aged care sector if they are to maintain basic standards of care over the coming decade.
A recent report released by the Committee for Economic Development of Australia (CEDA) shows a potential shortage of 110,000 workers in the sector by the year 2030.
CEDA’s report says the federal government and industry leaders “have failed to prepare for the human challenge at the centre of aged care”, driven by a steady increase in the population of Australian’s aged over 65.
65+ Population and Projection
Beautiful, easy data visualization and storytelling
According to data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) and projections from the Centre for Population, people aged over 65 will make up 20 per cent of Australians by the year 2031.
Aged care providers are already struggling with the increased demand caused by changing demographics, with 34 per cent of households in need of assistance reporting they are not having their care needs met.
The aged care sector needs to attract at least 17,000 new workers a year in order to provide the minimum three-star standard of care outlined by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW).
The report says several problems including poor training outcomes, lack of career progression, low wages and a negative public perception of the industry are “constraining the supply” of new workers.
If worker intake continues its current trajectory, Australia’s aged care sector will fall drastically short of even the minimum quality of care.
Aged Care Workforce Trajectories
Beautiful, easy data visualization and storytelling
A lack of action could cause a possible shortage of over 400,000 aged care workers by 2050 according to projections from CEDA, the ABS and the AIHW.
CEDA says cooperation between federal government and industry leaders is needed in order to build a workforce “that is both big enough and well-equipped to meet community expectations”.
This includes funding to improve training program outcomes and attracting current workers to upskill, and investment in technologies to minimise burdens on staff which should improve care quality.
The report stresses that the most important short-term change that needs to made is an increase in wages for aged care staff which are lower than other comparable industries.
Wages Bar Chart
Beautiful, easy data visualization and storytelling
This call for increased wages was echoed in the recent royal commission into aged care which also suggested improvements to work conditions and increased hours.
CEDA warns that there is no concrete plan laid out for the industry’s future and “if change does not occur, workforce shortages will only worsen even as the need for workers grows”.
