Time to resolve ‘rural aged care crunch’
Factors contributing to the aged care crunch in rural and remote communities have already been identified and it’s now time for solutions, according to peak body for aged care, Leading Age Services Australia (LASA).
Patrick Reid, LASA chief executive, claims there is an aged care crunch occurring in rural and remote Australia because there is insufficient funding and support at federal and state levels.
In response to an independent report into factors affecting the financial outcomes of aged care providers, which found rural/regional providers are significantly disadvantaged, the Aged Care Financing Authority has been given until mid December 2015 to look further into issues affecting rural and remote providers.
“Right now there is an aged care crunch occurring in rural and remote Australia because there is insufficient funding and support at federal and state levels,” says Patrick Reid, LASA chief executive.
“Fluctuating demand for beds, staff recruitment and retention, reduced access to allied health services, higher costs to access training and support and anomalies in current funding schemes are the primary challenges for aged care providers in rural and remote areas,” he says.
“These issues have already been identified by providers, peak bodies and communities. Now government has a report that shows it’s time for solutions.”
According to Mr Reid, sustainable solutions co-designed between local and state governments, federal government, providers, communities and peak bodies is needed.
“This would include a viable rural funding scheme that prioritises care, to enable services to be delivered in the communities where older Australians need them,” he says.
Through its members, LASA has identified five funding areas that need review to address the aged care crunch in regional and rural communities.
These funding areas include:
- Increased access to the rural viability supplement
- A rural base rate for all rural/regional providers
- Localised solutions for supporting people with dementia
- A rural/regional approach to Home Care allocations to ensure continuity of care
- Pooled training funds for rural and remote staff.
“Failure to enable older Australians to access services in their hometowns results in social dislocation and puts increased pressure on families and carers, and regional centre services including hospitals,” Mr Reid says.
“Supporting service providers to deliver care in smaller communities will not only mitigate the impact of social dislocation but create new opportunities in towns that are doing it tough.”
In June 2014, Aged Care Financing Authority (ACFA) engaged RSM Bird Cameron (RSM), in association with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), to study the qualitative and quantitative factors influencing and associated with the variable financial performance of different residential aged care providers.
The report by RSM Bird Cameron into factors influencing the financial performance of residential aged care providers found regional providers are significantly disadvantaged by having fewer beds, lower revenue and higher costs.
Assistant Minister for Social Services, Senator Mitch Fifield, responded to ACFA acknowledging the report and asking for a similar report on factors influencing the financial performance of the providers of home care packages and by 30 September 2016, and to provide analysis the issues affecting rural and remote providers by 16 December 2015.
