Tis’ the season for change
Older Australians deserve their Christmas present early, Aged Care Queensland chief executive, Nick Ryan, claims. So, what type of gift deserves an early arrival? Aged care reform. “We call upon the government to do more – to stand up and back reform now. We do look for it in the next Budget and it will be a great Christmas present for older Australians,” Mr Ryan tells DPS News.
Older Australians deserve their Christmas present early, Aged Care Queensland chief executive, Nick Ryan, claims. So, what type of gift deserves an early arrival? Aged care reform.
“We call upon the government to do more – to stand up and back reform now,” Mr Ryan tells DPS News. “We do look for it in the next Budget and it will be a great Christmas present for older Australians,” he adds.
Mr Ryan’s comments come after airing the aged care lobby group’s frustration over an Australian Institute of Health and Welfare report which shows Queenslanders reportedly wait the longest in the country to meet with Aged Care Assessment teams that have the role in determining the level of care needed for elderly Australians.
According to the report, the national median time from referral to ‘first face-to-face contact’ with an assessment team was 10 days, whereas the median waiting time in Queensland was more than two weeks.
“Part of the problem to keep ACAT teams running assessments is due to the fact Queensland is a decentralised mainland state,” he says.
According to Mr Ryan, older Australians should be able to access the full range of aged care.
“Our concern around ACATs is part of a broader concern capacity of governments and service providers to provide effective aged care for all Australians, irrespective of where they live,” he says.
Calling on the federal government to respond to the Productivity Commission report into Caring for Older Australians, released in August, Mr Ryan claims the industry “does not want to wait” until the next budget to see aged care reformed.
“Older Australians deserve aged care reform as soon as possible, and we call upon the government to implement reform now as a priority because the demand for aged care will rise sharply as the baby boomers enter,” he says.
Until reform is formally announced, Mr Ryan says it will continue to be a “waiting game”.
What experience do you have with Aged Care Assessment Teams (ACATs) and what are your thoughts on aged care reform? Let us know by commenting in the box below.
