Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety Research Paper released.

The Caring Futures Institute at Flinders University surveyed over 10,000 Australian adults not currently receiving aged care services, aged 18 to 91 years. The survey investigated the views and preferences of the general public regarding the quality of care and future funding of aged care in Australia. The study is the first of its kind in Australia and internationally.  It provides a unique and timely general public perspective to inform aged care policy and practice.

The survey findings show both keen awareness and a high level of agreement amongst members of the general public about what constitutes quality in aged care.

The most important quality of care attributes:

• older people treated with respect and dignity
• aged care staff having the skills and training needed to provide appropriate care and support
• the provision of services and supports for daily living that assist older people’s health and wellbeing.

Being supported to make your own decisions about care and services was among the less influential characteristics, even though this is a central tenet of the recent policy reform towards Consumer Directed Care in community aged care service delivery.

In conclusion, the report highlights the strong significance Australians place on the care of our most vulnerable citizens and that quality in aged care is highly valued. It shows the general public recognise the current deficiencies of Australia’s aged care system, and they believe in allocating significantly more government funding to achieve higher quality aged care. In addition to using co-contributions, based on care recipient’s capacity to contribute, it shows a majority of current income taxpayers, to ensure achievement of a high-quality aged care system, would be willing to pay more income tax.

Click here for a copy of the Research paper https://bit.ly/3jMOSoe