Labor leader Anthony Albanese’s pledge to have a Registered Nurse in every aged care home by mid-2023 appears to be under threat based on figures supplied to the Government.
The number of aged care nurses required for Mr Albanese’s plan would need to increase by about 14,000 from the current 30,000 registered and enrolled nurses within 18 months, according to figures understood to have been supplied by the Department of Health. To add to the problem, 7,000 of the 30,000 nurses are casual or contractors.
The Opposition leader said sourcing nurses from overseas was a part of his plan, along with funding more nurse training and taking steps to retain staff leaving the sector due to low pay and conditions.
Registered nurses (aged care) are already listed on the Department of Home Affairs’ Skilled Occupation list. The Coalition Government has been asking former and retired nurses to re-join the workforce since April last year if they had been working within the past three years.
Louise O’Neill, Aged Care Workforce Industry Council CEO, said the Council, along with several providers, has been working with the Department of Health and Department of Home Affairs on options to improve aged care providers’ access to overseas workers.
“Recently, the Council worked with both departments to provide webinars to inform and upskill the aged care sector on how to apply for skilled visas and labour agreements,” she said.
Committee for Economic Development Australia senior economist Cassandra Winzar said the political parties cannot take migration to solve the nursing crises for granted.
“All advanced economies are seeking the same type of worker. We will need to consider what incentives we need to offer to attract them. One would be to give overseas nurses long-term stability to come and build their career here, not just fill a gap we need them to fill for a couple of years.”
