Aged care may need 400,000 extra workers by 2050
Workforce training is not consistently reflecting new technology and care models, according to a national environmental scan conducted by Holmesglen Institute’s Home and Community Care Centre of Excellence.
Holmesglen Institute’s Home and Community Care Centre of Excellence said the scan found a gap between innovation and everyday care. It comes as demand for care at home grows rapidly.
By 2044, 1.82 million Australians are projected to need home care. By 2050, the aged-care sector may need up to 400,000 additional workers to meet future demand and quality expectations.
Fleur Goulding, Home and Community Care Centre of Excellence Strategic Lead, said more people want to stay in their own homes for longer. She said technology can help make that possible, but only if the workforce has the confidence and skills to use it well.
“The scan shows the challenge is not a lack of innovation. It is making sure new technologies and models of care are translated into the skills workers need in everyday practice,” Goulding said.
Research shows that workers need to be equipped with the skills to adapt to new and emerging technologies to support independent living. Telehealth and remote monitoring are already well established, while smart home technologies and assistive technologies show strong potential.
However, the impact of telehealth, remote monitoring, smart home technologies and assistive technologies depends on how well they are integrated into care. It also depends on whether workers have the skills to use them effectively and keep adapting as technological adoption increases.
In-home solutions could include an adaptable kitchen or bathroom. They could also include controls that make it easier to manage lighting and temperature, plus sensors and emerging AI tools that help detect changes in routine and identify potential care needs.
Digital tools can reduce administrative work so care workers can spend more time with the people they support. Workers and supervisors need the skills and confidence to understand these tools and how it can support someone’s care and their own care and leadership practices.
Smart Home Living Lab near Moorabbin
The findings reinforce the role of the Centre’s Smart Home Living Lab. The Centre’s Smart Home Living Lab will be developed in an existing home near Holmesglen’s Moorabbin campus.
Students, workers, researchers, industry and people receiving care will use the site to test how technology, home design and care work together in everyday life. It will also allow workers to practise using emerging technologies before using them in people’s homes.
People receiving care will have a role in shaping how those technologies support their needs. The project will generate practical, evidence-based design insights and may involve people who use, teach, design, deliver, research and support care.
“Care workers will increasingly need to combine strong human and interpersonal skills with digital capability, data interpretation and confidence working across home and virtual care environments,” Goulding said.
Early co-design workshops were held with care providers, industry experts, researchers, educators and technology partners. Those workshops highlighted that care journeys are rarely linear, and people’s support needs can increase, decrease or change over time.
Changing support needs require care systems that can respond flexibly as circumstances evolve. These insights are helping shape the Smart Home Living Lab as a place to explore how homes, technology, workforce skills and care models can support the right level of assistance at the right time while maintaining independence and wellbeing.
Holmesglen Institute’s Home and Community Care Centre of Excellence is a $20.6 million national initiative led by Holmesglen Institute and jointly funded by the Commonwealth Government and Victorian Government. It is part of a national network of TAFE Centres of Excellence established by the Australian Government with state and territory governments to strengthen workforce skills and foster innovation in industries critical to Australia’s future.
