We share below an article with information emphasizing the acute need for more Aged Care workers in Australia…this will be of interest to nurses wanting to make their dream career abroad!
(The original link is http://www.australiaforum.com/information/australia/job-shortages-in-aged-care-in-australia.html )
Carers for the aged should be included in Australia’s skilled occupations list for overseas visa applicants because of a severe shortage in the profession, it is claimed.
Australia’s Age Discrimination Commissioner Susan Ryan has requested that the Minister for immigration consider including ‘Aged Care Worker’ on the list.
The number of people in Australia aged 85 and older is projected to quadruple to more than 1.8 million over the next 40 years.
Ryan said that many valuable aged care workers came from recent immigrant populations and through more targeted immigration initiatives Australia could increase the numbers of skilled aged care workers.
She also singled out career changers as another important source of potential workers for the sector.
“Increasingly, aged care workers also come from other parts of the labour market, from second or third career moves, or people coming from declining sectors and aged care can be a good option for older workers who are having difficulty finding jobs, ”she said.
Speaking at a National Aged Care Alliance Meeting in Canberra she explained that a ‘looming human rights disaster’ in the provision of aged care could be diverted, but only if society placed a higher value on careers in aged care.
Central to this would be better opportunities for immigrants and career changers, she said, and pointed out that the number of people in Australia aged 85 and older is projected to quadruple to more than 1.8 million over the next 40 years.
“We need to recognize and plan for this increased need for health service provision. This is an urgent and critical challenge for Australia. If we don’t provide properly for aged care, we will have a human rights disaster on our hands,” she explained.
While the Aged Care reforms improve on previous policies and programmes by including a consumer choice approach, Ryan said the real test lies in the implementation and providing aged care that was fully respectful to the rights of older people.
“The provision of aged care must align with the principles and obligations to which Australia has committed under international human rights instruments that include principles such as non-discrimination and equality, participation, monitoring and accountability mechanisms and remedies. Our carer workforce will be key to success,” she added.
She also said that the biggest implementation issue came down to carers; who they were, how they were rewarded, whether there were enough of them. “We do not have enough now and unless we introduce new approaches, we won’t have anywhere near enough in 40 years,” she pointed out.
Ryan emphasized that if more people were to choose to become aged care workers then incentives, support, promotion and encouragement were needed. “We must place more value and prestige on careers in aged care, and improve the training and rewards for these crucial jobs,” she concluded.
