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What is the Future of The Digital Home in The New Aged Care Act?
Despite the Royal Commission's recommendations, the new Aged Care Act seems to have overlooked the importance of digital technologies in home care.
by David Waldie
Remote care monitoring, data and artificial intelligence are transforming the aged care industry and are regarded as key to addressing the needs of home care operators and care recipients in Australia.
But sometime in 2023, the Department quietly dropped Digital Technologies in the home as a Service Type in the Support at Home Program (SAHP). When asked in an Industry Briefing “why”, response from the Department was … silence. There is a lot to applaud about SAHP and the New Aged Care Act, but what happened to a vision of a digitally enabled aged care home in Australia?
The Royal Commissioners got it
The Commissioners understood the importance of technology when they commissioned a report on the ICT architecture to support technology and infrastructure needed in the sector. The Royal Commission Report itself highlighted technology in more than a dozen of its 148 Recommendations, and in particular Recommendation 109 (extract below).
Recommendation 109 from The Royals Commission into Aged Care.
Now you See It, Now you Don’t
In 2022, the Support at Home Program was launched with much fanfare. It promised a new approach to care in the home, including a commitment to fund Digital Technologies in the home as separate Service Type. That is, the acquisition and installation of, and subscription to, digitally enabled technologies that use software for the purpose of supporting consumer independence, care, monitoring, functioning and risk management or social support. And the education, assistance and support to make it work. Bravo! See the extract.
Then, it disappeared.
Screenshot
Faced with a backlash from operators for whom management fees were sacrosanct, did the Department or Government (or both) quietly trade away the future for more of the same?
There were some mentions in the back end of explanatory papers that the department still believes in digital technology in the home and that there would be funding available via research grants and the like. Not exactly a signal to the technology sector to invest in confidence.
That leaves it to market forces to drive adoption. What we know of course is that the sector adoption of digital home technologies is glacial. A home care sector focussed on care labour hours and care planning is keen to adopt technology that drives labour efficiency, but slow to adopt new technologies and digital ways of improving the life of the care recipient in the home, unless there are compelling reasons to do so.
What does the New Aged Care Act say?
A quick search of “digital” in the Bill for the New Aged Care Act reveals the intent to regulate digital platforms that facilitate labour services to the sector to the same care and quality standards as traditional home providers. Good, but regulating is not an incentive.
A search of “assistive technology” does not help. That term sits alongside words like “mobility aids”. Wheelie walkers. The Explanatory Memorandum goes further, stating “this category includes … non-digital assistive technology”. “Home modifications” is not much help either.
Of course, the Department is big on digital transformation when it comes to reporting and compliance to meet the government’s G2B needs. We have weekly departmental updates on that. Just not digital transformation in the home aimed at delivering real world care outcomes for elders.
And there you have it. A “once in a generation” $5.6B aged care plan which solidifies the home as the primary locus for care yet but has no room for funding or support for the digital aged care home.
There are important government initiatives to mention. The capital assistance grant program to fund upgrades of nurse call systems. And the virtual nursing services in aged care tender does entertain the prospect of centralised nurse desks for regional and remote operators. But that is not the same as entrenching support for digital technologies in the on-boarding and care planning of individuals.
A Vision for Aged Care with Digital Technology in the Home.
So what are we missing out on? Digitally enabled technologies that improve function, care, social engagement and independence in the home, and reduce risk. And the people, to make them work. Embracing these innovations will be key to unlocking the full potential of ageing in place. For this “once in a generation” change, the last hope lies with the regulatory bodies who have the task of re-defining the service categories and charges. We may yet see a triumph of hope over experience.
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