Aged Care Workforce Service Forecast
Lead: Dr Ray Naden
The Aged Care workforce service forecast group adopted a ‘whole of systems’ approach to the health of older people, looking at the range of factors which impact on the health of older people and the relationships between them. These include the needs of older people themselves, the services which exist or are required to meet these needs, and the workforce which provides these services.
More of the same will not meet the challenge of increasing demand with finite services. It will be necessary to provide more of some existing services as more older people will require them. However, it will also be necessary to innovate to provide for some needs in ways that are significantly different to current services. The system of the future will have to be well integrated, rather than a range of discrete or “siloed” services as they are currently.
Next Steps
A further report on the future workforce for older people with dementia is being prepared by the forecast group, with the focus on delaying admissions to rest home by improving support for the informal carer at home.
The report builds on the initial report to concentrate on this group who experience moderate levels of impairment, acknowledging that those with severe levels of impairment will still continue to need 24/7 care from health professionals and those with mild impairment are already cared for at home.
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