Aged Care Association Welcomes Nurse Settlement, Calls For Sustainable Funding For Aged Residential Care

The Aged Care Association welcomes the successful ratification of new collective agreements for Public Health and Mental Health nurses employed by Health New Zealand.

"We are pleased for these nurses and acknowledge the important role they play in supporting communities across New Zealand," says Tracey Martin, Chief Executive of the Aged Care Association.

"At the same time, it is important that Government recognises that aged residential care nurses look after some of the most clinically complex and acute New Zealanders outside of hospital settings. They support residents with high levels of frailty, multiple co-morbidities, advanced dementia, and palliative care needs, and they do so while also supporting families at what is often one of the most distressing times in their lives."

Aged residential care nurses are a critical part of New Zealand’s health continuum, providing 24/7 clinical care to approximately 40,000 older New Zealanders nationwide.

Ms Martin said that as the primary funder of aged residential care services, Government must ensure that funding settings reflect both the value of the workforce and the full cost of delivering care.

"We support pay recognition for nurses and care staff. However, it is important that workforce-related uplifts are additional to, not instead of, adjustments to the underlying bed-day rate," she said.

"Many providers are currently operating below the true cost of care. When a general uplift is fully prescribed to wages, it leaves no capacity to address rising food, utilities, insurance, compliance and capital costs. That places ongoing pressure on service sustainability."

Sustainable aged care funding requires both fair workforce remuneration and realistic contract pricing.

"Aged care is health care. If we are serious about preparing for a future with a significantly increased number of older New Zealanders, funding must reflect the real cost of delivering high-quality, 24-hour clinical care in residential settings."

The Association is calling on Government to ensure that upcoming annual funding adjustments recognise both workforce requirements and the structural sustainability of the sector.

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