Aged Care workers are the very cornerstone of the Australian aged care industry.
They make up the majority of the industry’s workforce and they are on the ground – providing attention and care to our senior and often vulnerable citizens.
Quite simply, the industry could not operate without sufficient numbers of well trained, suitably experienced Aged Care workers.
Most Aged Care workers are extremely passionate about the work they do.
They say their job is personally rewarding and they gain huge satisfaction from the positive contribution they make to elderly people’s lives.
Aged Care workers enjoy the close and regular contact they have with residents, and they often forge strong and meaningful bonds with residents and their families.
Many see their job as an opportunity to give back to the people who have already done so much for society and they enjoy being able to make a difference to people, who may be in the final years of their life.
The Aged Care Workforce 2016 report by the Department of Health said, “Job satisfaction is high across all work aspects [for Aged Care workers].”
Not every position of employment is a final destination. In fact, most jobs are just stepping stones along the pathway of your career.
Your initial grounding within your industry of choice will always dictate how many future opportunities are available to you and that grounding is derived from the training and education that you receive along the way.
Finding the right type of training within your industry allows employees to broaden their horizons with a knowledge and confidence that comes from understanding all the aspects of a role.
While almost all education can be somewhat beneficial, there is absolutely no substitute for the real world experience provided through on-the-job training, or the expertise and insight that real time practical experience can provide.
Industries like Aged Care often involve a delicate and nuanced approach when dealing with clients and it is circumstances like this where interpersonal training methods bear the most fruit.
Aged Care workers may choose to specialise in a particular field, for example they may focus on: palliative care, the growing field of dementia care or they may look to provide help to management with certain tasks, such as roster planning.
Aged Care workers can also take on further training and move into roles such as being an Aged Care Activity Coordinator, Team Leader, Supervisor, Leisure and Therapy Assistant or Volunteer Coordinator.
With further training still, Aged Care workers can take on roles such as Diversional Therapist or Nurse.
Despite all the positives of a career as an Aged Care worker, Professor John Pollaers (Former Chair of the Australian Aged Care Workforce Taskforce), recently wrote in HelloCare that Aged Care workers are “undervalued” and that attracting and retaining staff into the role has become a “critical issue”.
He recommended that the education of Aged Care workers needs to “keep pace with the industry to ensure an adaptable, highly-skilled workforce”. Education needs to be flexible, fit-for-purpose and supportive, he wrote.
So, how do we provide the best education and training for Australia’s Aged Care workforce, to ensure staff have the skills and experience they require and to ensure that the highest quality of care is consistently provided to the elderly members of our society?
If knowledge is power, than there is certainly plenty of power in traineeships!
MAS National is an Australian Apprenticeship Support Network provider, that offers a free service to all organisations within the Aged Care sector that helps support workforce development through the use of traineeships.
Traineeship programs have multiple benefits for both employers and employees and can aid recruitment processes, help support growth, increase productivity and service quality within Aged Care organisations and provide improved staff skills, engagement and assist with staff retention.
By empowering your employees with the interpersonal and ongoing support of a traineeship, you ensure staff have the right grounding to eventually expand upon.
From an employee perspective, MAS National provides you with the peace of mind that will allow you to confidently invest in yourself and in turn allow prospective employers or residents to invest in you.
While for employers, MAS National provides an impeccable track record of best-practice traineeship programs that bolster the quality and flexibility of both current and perspective staff.
MAS National services come at no cost to the organisation, allowing employers to focus on the job at hand with the knowledge that their growing team is growing in the right way.
The Aged Care industry is built upon the bonds that facilities and services share with clients, and these bonds come from the peace of mind provided by competent and well administered care.
For all your traineeships needs, please contact MAS National on 1300 627 628.
