There’s a hidden ageing and workforce crisis in Australia’s rural communities with ageing towns at risk of being forced to choose between funding schools or aged care as they struggle to recruit staff.
“The exodus of young people has led to a rapidly ageing population in our rural and regional towns. As people age they need more care and fewer people are available to provide that care,” shared Greg Baker in the Sydney Morning Herald’s letters to the editor.
“We have watched this trend for decades and no one with the ability to make decisions has chosen to do anything about it. Someday our leaders will work out that it is far cheaper to maintain people in country towns than in cities. In the meantime, I can only despair.”
The Sydney Morning Herald’s Senior economics correspondent, Shane Wright, looked at the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) figures that show how bad Australia’s rapid ageing problem is.
For example, the single largest group of Australians over 85 live in Sydney’s Castle Hill where they’re supported by six independent living villages and five assisted living communities.
But it’s a different story for towns like Benalla in Victoria or Glen Innes in New South Wales. In 2001, 28% of Benalla was under the age of 20 and just 2.5% over 85, while Glen Innes had a slightly lower 1.9% of people over 85.
More than 20 years later and 4.9% of Benella and 3.4% of Glenn Innes are over 85, while roughly 20% of their populations are under 20. The towns are getting older.
This is a familiar story across countless towns where the median age is somewhere in the 40s or 50s. It’s only locations with schools that have lower median ages.
“The reason for all these numbers is not to complain that there are more older Australians. It should be celebrated as a policy success that if you happen to live in Australia your chances of a long life are much better than if you were born in just about any other country on the planet,” Mr Wright explained.
“But catering for the specific needs of older Australians living regionally is going to become extremely difficult for small communities that are already struggling to provide the services and tough choices will have to be made. For instance, does a town have to decide between maintaining a local school or putting resources towards specialist health or aged care facilities?”
For Bombala resident Judith Rostron, this is a pressing problem. She said her town’s healthcare offerings are inadequate because of limited funding.
“There is a nurse at the hospital during working hours, but no doctor. To go to a hospital it is necessary to go to Bega (two hours away) or for more critical care to Canberra (three hours away). So much has been spent in Sydney on metros and expressways but country areas have been not only ignored but downgraded,” she added.
Aged care providers in regional locations are losing roughly $8,600 per resident a year while also spending more money on agency costs compared to their metropolitan counterparts.
On a positive note, research from the UTS Ageing Research Collaborative found that rural and remote homes may have the highest direct costs but they are producing the highest revenue. Therefore, they are turning a small positive margin for direct care costs. It’s the additional costs for accommodation and everyday services like providing food, laundry and cleaning doing the damage.
With roughly 20% of Australia’s population living in regional towns and communities, there’s a growing need for retirement and aged care services in those communities. People want to age at home instead of relocating to a faraway town where they have no support networks.
However, attracting and retaining aged care staff in these regions is difficult. Frank Ward shared his experiences at Port Stephens where he retired in 2000. He’s been living in a retirement community since 2003.
“There have been regular changes in staff; rents and home prices have been driven so high that accommodation has all but disappeared for staff, especially those working in aged care and hospitality. A recent consultation with residents on the issue of high-rise housing saw general opposition,” Frank explained.
“When I asked where they expected the staff for their future care to live, as our care facilities needed staff, most people had not considered the issue. A friend sold up and moved back to Sydney to be sure there would be care staff. Our communities are nearly full during holidays, but there’s a rapidly decreasing number of workers to care for me and my fellow aged.”
The Federal Government recently announced that it would release 100 additional aged care places in regional and rural areas.
This shows it recognises demand. But with staffing an issue, it also needs to do more to invest in and support aged care workers willing to work in regional centres, especially those who are young and at risk of moving away to metropolitan centres.
