What NZ’s aged care sector can learn from Australia

There are lessons for New Zealand in how Australia is managing its aged care sector to better support its aging population. 

Australia’s model isn’t perfect, and would need ‘editing’ to fit the Kiwi cultural context.  But, it highlights what we must do – urgently – to create an equitable, properly funded and sustainable aged care system. 

We need such a system because one in five Kiwis – over a million of us – will be 65 and over by 2028.   

We’ll be using more healthcare resources, occupying more aged care beds (already in short supply) and contributing to a 240 per cent jump in dementia cases that will cost the country nearly $10 billion a year in inflation adjusted dollars by 20501. 

Unlike Australia, successive New Zealand governments have largely ignored our aging population, particularly the problem of dementia, which is now one of this country’s largest health challenges. 

Budget 2025 was another missed opportunity. 

It did include new funding for health services, but there was absolutely nothing to prepare the system for the long-term impacts of the country’s aging population, most of whom live at home. 

A key lesson from over the ditch is the importance of having quality, integrated and accessible services across the health and aged care continuum, from community services to the aged residential care and end-of-life sectors.   

That, in turn, requires an independent, evidence-based pricing structure that covers the entire system, starting with community services; a pricing structure developed and designed with sector involvement, and that supports providers and the workforce. 

And I support wholeheartedly, calls by Aged Care Association Chief Executive, Hon Tracey Martin, for an independent task force, with bipartisan political representation and sector input, to design, implement and monitor the impact of the changes that are needed in our aged care sector. 

A second lesson is we need to invest prudently, as highlighted by problems in the dementia sector. 

Preliminary findings of new research – The IDEA project, the biggest study of dementia in New Zealand – document the appalling statistics facing thousands of New Zealanders with dementia.

The research supports what Alzheimers NZ has been saying for years – that at least 50 percent of people with dementia symptoms cannot get a formal diagnosis through our health system.  They are therefore ineligible for help and support. 

Secondly, and this also supports Alzheimers NZ’s estimates, 30 per cent of those who are diagnosed cannot access help through the country’s 17 woefully under-funded community dementia services. 

Many of these people – some 30,000 – therefore default to hospitals, emergency departments and aged residential care.  When in hospital, they stay nearly twice as long as other patients, taking up much-needed beds. 

The lesson here is it would be far more sensible to invest in community dementia services at $11.11 a day, rather than forcing people with dementia to use higher cost hospital-level care and aged residential care because there is no other choice.   

This shows there are touchpoints in the health and aged care systems that can be leveraged, both to help balance the books, and make the system more accessible and sustainable. 

Funding community dementia services is one such touchpoint.  Three others, clearly outlined in the Dementia Mate Wareware Action Plan, would have similar positive returns if implemented urgently: 

• Ensure New Zealanders with dementia get a timely diagnosis and dementia management planning in the primary care system.  

• Provide better support for the dementia workforce and care partners/whānau.  

• Invest in population brain health programmes to reduce the numbers of people with dementia in future .  

Australia recognised the impact of its aging population and is taking steps to find solutions. 

There are lessons to be learned across the ditch.