In 2016, the latest year for which comprehensive data are publicly available, there were more than 366,000 aged care workers, including 240,000 direct care workers (Mavromaras et al. 2017). Almost 9 in 10 workers in aged care were female (87% of those in residential care, and 89% of those in home care or home support), and the aged care workforce was generally older than the average across all industries (Mavromaras et al. 2017).
The next census of residential, home care and home support providers was undertaken by the Department of Health during December 2020 and January 2021. Results are expected to be available in 2021.
The Royal Commission was established in October 2018 to explore a wide range of issues relating to the quality and safety of aged care in Australia. The Royal Commission’s final report was delivered 1 March 2021 and highlighted the inadequacies of the current aged care system. These concerns are shared by the Australian public: in the April 2021 ANUpoll, more than half (55%) of respondents indicated that they had ‘not very much confidence’ in the aged care system, and 12% had ‘no confidence at all’ (Biddle & Makkai 2021).
The Royal Commission noted barriers to navigating and entering the aged care system; a lack of available information to inform people’s decisions on which aged care services will meet their needs; inadequate access to health care for people using aged care services – particularly those living in residential aged care; and substandard care and abuse. In total, the Royal Commission made 148 recommendations, proposing a detailed strategy to change and improve the aged care system.
The Royal Commission also specified what high-quality care involves: that older people are assisted to live self-determined and meaningful lives; that educated and skilled workers provide compassionate care; and that a high quality of life is obtained. For immediate improvement, the Royal Commission singled out food and nutrition, dementia care, the use of restrictive practices, and palliative care.
The need for accessible, comprehensive and meaningful data on aged care use and outcomes underpins many of the Royal Commission’s recommendations. It also recommended the development of new standards, guidelines and indicators relating to aged care quality and safety, including a star rating system for comparing the performance of different aged care providers.
For more information on how aged care data can currently be used to understand a person’s pathway through different aged care services (and the quality of the care they receive), and future opportunities for improvement, see ’Chapter 8, Understanding older people’s journey through aged care – the story in the data’ in Australia’s welfare 2021: data insights.
On 11 May 2021, the Australian Government published their response to the Royal Commission’s recommendations. The Government accepted or accepted in principle 126 recommendations, supported alternatives for four recommendations, noted further consideration for 12 recommendations, and did not accept six recommendations. This response coincided with the release of the 2021–22 Federal Budget, which included a $17.7 billion aged care reform package. Central to the Government’s response was a commitment to replace the Aged Care Act 1997 with a new consumer-focused Aged Care Act, planned to commence from 1 July 2023.
For more information on aged care, see:
- AIHW’s dedicated aged care data website – GEN aged care data
- Report on Government Services data tables
- Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission website – Aged Care Quality
- International data on characteristics of aged care systems are available from members of the OECD through OECD.Stat
- Summary documents from the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety – as well as the final report published through 5 volumes – can be accessed here.
References
ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) 2014. Australian historical population statistics, 2014. ABS cat. No. 3105.0.65.001. Canberra: ABS.
ABS 2019. Australian Demographic Statistics, Jun 2019—Twenty years of population change (Feature Article). ABS cat. No. 3101.0. Canberra: ABS.
Aged Care Financing Authority 2020. Eighth Report on the Funding and Financing of the Aged Care Industry—July 2020. Canberra: Department of Health.
AIHW (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare) 2021a. Dementia deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia. Canberra: AIHW. Viewed 22 April 2021.
AIHW 2021b. GEN – People using aged care. Canberra: AIHW. Viewed 22 April 2021.
Biddle N & Makkai T. 2021. Views and experience of the aged care system in Australia –April 2021. ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods.
Department of Health 2021. COVID-19 outbreaks in Australian residential aged care facilities. Canberra: Department of Health.
Department of Health 2020. Aged care data snapshot 2020—third release. Canberra: Department of Health.
Mavromaras K, Knight G, Isherwood L, Crettenden A, Flavel J, Karmel T et al. 2017. 2016 National Aged Care Workforce Census and Survey—the aged care workforce, 2016. Canberra: Department of Health.
OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) 2020. OECD.Stat. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Viewed 6 April 2021.
SCRGSP (Steering Committee for the Review of Government Service Provision) 2021. Report on Government Services 2021—part f, section 14. Canberra: Productivity Commission.
The European Commission 2020. Eurostat—Population structure and ageing. The European Commission. Viewed 6 April 2021.