The residential aged care sector needs almost 6000 more nurses to meet tough new rules this year, casting doubt on whether many services will be able to continue operating. Source: The Australian.
According to new figures from the Department of Health and Aged Care, residential aged care is facing a gap of 5918 nurses by 2024-25, an improvement of only 44 from government forecasts during the December quarter.
A further seven aged-care facilities closed in the three months to December, with Labor’s stringent nursing reforms placing intense strain on the sector. The closures come despite escalating demand on residential services as the population ages.
The Albanese Government’s latest intergenerational report projected life expectancy continuing to increase, placing more demand on government-funded services.
At least 54 aged care homes have shut since September 2022, according to figures from the Department of Health and Aged Care, as the sector grapples with Labor’s staffing reforms, including 24/7 mandatory registered nurses and minimum-care requirements.
Nursing homes are racing to comply with a sector-wide average of 215 minutes of care, including 44 minutes of direct care with a registered nurse from October 1 this year.
The Department of Health and Aged Care estimates last week revealed just 30 per cent of facilities had met the Government’s targets.
Catholic Health Australia said its members were facing pressure as a result of the ongoing shortfall in the number of registered nurses available for aged care.
The group, which represents more than 550 residential and community aged-care services, called for the re-establishment of Health Workforce Australia to act as a dedicated government agency to lead labour planning.
“No agency has sufficient oversight of either current or future workforce needs in Australia’s health and care sectors,” said Catholic Health Australia public health director Alex Lynch.
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Aged care failing to close registered nurse gap (By Jess Malcolm, The Australian)
