Department of Health 2020 Aged Care Workforce Census

The 2020 Aged Care Workforce Census was conducted by the Australian Government Department of Health between December 2020 and January 2021. This dashboard was created by Quantium Health on behalf of and with input from the Department of Health to present key findings from the Census. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare provided input into dashboard functionality and presentation to enable hosting on GEN. 

The 2020 Census was designed to provide a periodic overview of the aged care sector workforce, and aims to inform the Australian Government and the sector on the estimated size, growth, attributes and skills of the aged care workforce. It was sent nation-wide to in-scope providers* across three key aged care service types.
 
Responses were received across ACPRs from:

• 1,329 Residential Aged Care (RAC) facilities (49% of all RAC facilities)

• 616 Home Care Packages Program (HCPP) providers (47%)
• 505 Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP) providers (38%). 

*For information on in-scope providers refer to the Data Notes.

Aged care service types

Residential aged care (RAC) provides support and accommodation for people who have been assessed as needing higher levels of care than can be provided in the home, and the option for 24-hour nursing care. RAC is provided on either a permanent, or a temporary basis.
 
Home Care Packages Program (HCPP) is a more structured, more comprehensive package of home-based support, provided over four levels.
 
Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP) provides entry-level services focused on supporting individuals to undertake tasks of daily living to enable them to be more independent at home and in the community.

A provider (or organisation) manages an aged care service. Providers may operate a number of different services, sometimes across different aged care service types. A service can be aged care delivered in a residential facility or the home. A service can also be an outlet that provides home support.  The Australian Government assesses and approves home and residential aged care providers. Approved providers are subsidised by the Government, making services more affordable and accessible to eligible care recipients.
 
There are five job groups that make up the aged care workforce and are regularly referred to in the dashboard:

1. Personal care workers, which include personal care worker and personal care worker formal traineeship job roles.
2. Nurses, which include enrolled nurse, nurse practitioner, and registered nurse job roles.
3. Allied Health, which includes the following job roles: Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander health worker/practitioner, dietitian, diversional therapist, exercise physiologist, occupational therapist, pharmacist, physiotherapist, podiatrist, psychologist, social worker, speech therapist, allied health assistants, and other (not specified) allied health.
4. Administration, which includes administration, management, and quality and education coordinator job roles.
5. Other, which is made up of ancillary care and pastoral/spiritual care worker job roles. Ancillary care includes services such as cleaning, kitchen, gardening, and maintenance. 

The total aged care workforce comprises the Direct Care Workforce (personal care workers, nurses, and allied health) and the remaining job groups above (administration and other).