Impact of Australia’s aged care reforms on governance, operations, and recipients of residential aged care in Australia: A qualitative study

Abstract

Australia’s ongoing aged care reforms have re-focused funding and service provisions towards enabling older Australians to stay in their own home for as long as possible by increasing homecare and community supported services. Consequently, older Australians enter residential aged care at a much later stage in life with less mobility and increased frailty, requiring a higher level of care. Residential aged care providers face the challenges of finding new ways of delivering services that meet the increasing care needs and expectations of their residents and families while ensuring financial viability of their organisations under the reform conditions.

Government reviews of the aged care reforms have centred on assessing the progress and effectiveness of implementing reform initiatives. Research examining various aspects of residential aged care during the reform implementation period have focused on elements of service delivery from the perspectives of aged care workers and/or residents. There is a limited focus on a more comprehensive understanding of the experiences inclusive of provider organisations, aged care workforce and client and family perspectives in the reform environment.

The purpose of this thesis study is to adopt a holistic approach to explore the impact of the reforms on residential aged care services at the levels of organisational governance, operations, and clients and families within residential aged care hence providing a snapshot of the various dimensions of reform impact on residential care delivery.

The insights provided by this thesis study demonstrate the interconnectedness between different components in delivering residential aged care and how they reflect policy outcomes. These insights contribute to a deeper understanding between key stakeholders of residential aged care and highlight the importance of anticipating potential consequences of policy outcomes.