Aged care patients could have better quality and safer care if the government mandated minimum training requirements for workers, a new report states.
By requiring all aged care workers to have at least a certificate III, care residents would be safer while workers would have better career progression opportunities, leading to more stability in the industry, it says.
The Australian Institute report investigating the case for worker registration and mandatory qualification said increasing the status of care work is critical to building a sustainable workforce and care system.
"Without ongoing professional development requirements workers may receive no support at all to keep up to date with good practice or to develop their capabilities to meet changing demands and needs," the report said.
"It can ensure ongoing learning and specialisation for responding effectively to the diversity and growing complexity of care needs across all aged care services."
The Centre for Future Work report's release comes as aged care reforms are set to take effect in July, including screening requirements to exclude unstable workers and a mandatory code of conduct.
It warned the changes do not go far enough to ensure quality and safety.
"There is no system-wide positive recognition of the full range of skills and knowledge required by aged care workers, no requirements for workers to maintain and develop their skills and knowledge, and no recognition of workers who do," it said.
About 370,000 people work in the aged care industry in Australia across residential aged care, home care and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander aged care.
The report's author Fiona Macdonald said four out of five aged care workers are women who have long been undervalued and low-paid.
"Mandatory and coordinated accreditation would allow workers to have their skills recognised, boost job satisfaction and make the industry more attractive as a long-term career," Dr Macdonald said.
The most significant costs would be short-term establishment and initial training costs, but that is mitigated since about two-thirds of care workers already hold relevant qualifications.
A mandatory minimum certificate III requirement for personal care workers was recommended by the Aged Care Royal Commission in 2021 following extensive consultations and hearings over two years.
