Source: Aged Care Association
The Aged Care Association has welcomed the release of A place to grow old: Securing the future of aged care and thanked the Government and the Ministerial Advisory Group on Aged Care for this substantial piece of work.
Aged Care Association Chief Executive Hon Tracey Martin says the report provides an important opportunity to future-proof aged care for today’s older New Zealanders and the generations who will follow them.
“For many years, successive reports have documented the pressures facing aged care, including the underfunding of services, growing demand and the consequences of insufficient capacity.
This Government has gone further than any previous government by investing not simply in another report that restates the problems, but in identifying potential solutions. That is an important distinction and one that deserves to be acknowledged.”
Ms Martin says the Advisory Group was asked to grapple with one of the most significant long-term challenges facing New Zealand and to do so within an extremely constrained timeframe.
“We acknowledge the considerable work undertaken by the Advisory Group and thank its members for applying their knowledge and practical experience to developing a potential pathway for reform.
This is a substantial and complex report. We will take the next few days to properly digest its recommendations and consider what they could mean across the full diversity of aged care providers, services and communities.”
Ms Martin says the Association is encouraged by the report’s recognition that aged care cannot be considered in isolation from the rest of the health system.
“Aged care is the daily reality of many older New Zealanders and their families. The availability of appropriate care also has direct consequences for hospital capacity, primary and community care, and the country’s finances.
Connected, whole-of-system reform offers New Zealand the opportunity to manage the growing needs of our ageing population while strengthening the long-term sustainability of aged care and the wider health system.”
The Association will now carefully assess the suggested reforms, including how they could affect large and small providers, charitable and community-based organisations, rural and regional services, and the different forms of care older New Zealanders rely on.
“Every New Zealander deserves the right care, in the right place, at the right time. For those who need residential care, that means enabling providers to offer care close to every community, so older people can remain in the communities where they have lived, contributed and are loved.”