22 April 2022
Demand for permanent residential aged care services is likely to double in the next 15 years, the findings of SWSPHN’s 2022-2025 Needs Assessment have revealed.
The Needs Assessment conducted in 2021 found that in 10 years:
- there will be a 74 per cent increase (to 200,000) in the number of people aged 65 and over
- the most significant growth will be those aged 85 years and over. Many people in this age group have at least one chronic condition
The needs assessment also found:
- about 0.7 per cent of South Western Sydney’s population requires residential aged care now, but this will increase to one per cent by 2031
- the current rate of residential care recipients across SWSPHN’s footprint is 66 per 1,000 people
- there are currently 68 RACFs in South Western Sydney offering 7,427 places
SWSPHN’s new Healthy Ageing at Home initiative aims to mitigate this imbalance by funding services to support the management of chronic conditions, thereby enhancing independent living for older community members and delaying their need to enter residential aged care.
This month we’re taking a closer look at SWSPHN’s new Healthy Ageing at Home initiative.
What is healthy ageing?
According to the World Health Organization, healthy ageing is the process of developing and maintaining the functional ability which enables wellbeing in older age.
Functional ability is broken down into five parts and is defined as the ability to:
- meet basic needs
- learn, grow and make decisions
- be mobile
- build and maintain relationships
- and contribute to society
What are the leading causes of disease burden in older people?
The leading causes of disease burden in older people (ie non-Indigenous people aged 65 years and older and Indigenous people aged 50 years and older) are:
- coronary heart disease
- dementia
- chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- stroke
- lung cancer
The overall burden of disease for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people is more than twice that for non-Indigenous Australians.
What can be done to reduce these burdens?
According to the World Health Organization, modifying lifestyle factors can prevent 80 per cent of diseases. This includes both:
- physical activity – 15 minutes a day can prolong your life by three years
- healthy diet – rich in fruits and vegetables
- reducing high risk behaviours (smoking, alcohol consumption)
- relationships and connections – key to wellbeing and happiness
- positive attitude and ability to adapt – to stress but not distress
What is the Healthy Ageing at Home initiative?
Through the Healthy Ageing at Home initiative, SWSPHN is working with community, healthcare providers and local community organisations to co-design services and programs to support healthy ageing at home.
Initiatives may include helping an older person to:
- Increase healthy lifestyle behaviours
- Reduce social isolation and loneliness
- Improve management of chronic disease
- Access and connect to existing services
- Continue to live at home for longer
Other solutions may include training and support for local healthcare providers, carers and families with ageing parents.
These solutions may complement existing services or can be new services.
What steps have been taken through the initiative so far?
To gain insights from local stakeholders on where to direct funds and efforts to support healthy ageing at home, we have so far:
- Held three face-to-face forums for older people and carers at venues in Campbelltown, Fairfield and Mittagong. Those who could not attend the forum were invited to share their ideas and feedback via a community survey.
- Held a virtual meeting and opened a separate survey for healthcare providers and services to provide their input.
What were the key findings of the community survey?
Overall health/impact of health conditions:
- 61 per cent of respondents identified a health condition which limited their ability to keep active and healthy, with 25 per cent responding it had a significant impact
Interaction with health services
- 34 of the 37 respondents had visited their GP in the past six months, with only one respondent not interacting with any health professional
Perceived ease of access to services
- 86 per cent of respondents identified they were able to access healthcare services when needed, with the vast majority using public and bulk?billing services
- Using weighted scoring, it was clear GP services are seen as the greatest perceived ease of access, with specialist and home care services being the most challenging
- 15 respondents identified needing home care support, with the main needs being cleaning, gardening and transportation services
What is needed to support people to live at home for longer?
- 89 per cent of respondents indicated a desire to continue living at home and did not want to move into an aged care facility
- However, more than half the respondents also expected they would require more assistance than can be provided at home within the next one to five years
What are the next steps in the process?
An advisory group made up of older people, healthcare and other support service providers, met on 7 April to review the key findings from the consultations and surveys, and identify the area of focus for the Healthy Ageing Initiative. A co-design report with final recommendations for the services and programs is planned to be released by the end of April.
Updates on our initiatives will be published on our HealthChat website. For more information, please contact SWSPHN Priority Populations Program Advisors Fiona McKenzie and Bessie Berberovic on 02 4632 3000.
