Older Australians who wish to live at home rather than enter residential care are set to benefit from a new research centre dedicated to improving in-home health outcomes and support independent living.
A $3 million Federal Government grant has been awarded to Flinders University to establish a Centre of Research Excellence (CRE) in Optimising Health Care in the Home for Older Australians – to accelerate improvements in care coordination, health outcomes and system sustainability.
Led by Professor Gillian Harvey (pictured above), the national centre builds upon research funded by The Hospital Research Foundation Group that worked with older Australians and their carers to learn the key pain points and identify solutions.
“For the first time ever, Australia has a larger cohort of older people being cared for in their own homes than in residential aged care, and we know that’s where most would prefer to stay,” Prof Harvey said.
“We must ensure our health and aged care systems are equipped to support this choice. This population is among the frailest in our society, with complex care needs and high rates of hospitalisation.
“Our Centre will develop practical, evidence-based strategies to help them live safely and independently at home for longer.
“We are extremely grateful for the support from THRF which helped establish the platform – alongside our ongoing collaboration with ROSA and health and aged care providers in SA – to develop the CRE proposal.”
The CRE will be hosted at Flinders University and be supported by a consortium of leading institutions including the Registry of Senior Australians (ROSA), the National Ageing Research Institute and Deakin University.
It will bring together a team of national and international experts to deliver an array of objectives for successful ageing at home, preventing falls, transitioning from hospital-to-home, supporting aged care workers and more.
The Centre will also establish an Aged Care Observatory to monitor care pathways and outcomes in real time.
“Our Centre will work with consumers, carers, clinicians, providers and policymakers to co-design solutions that are feasible, scalable and sustainable,” Prof Harvey said.
“We will use data, lived experience and implementation science to drive continuous improvement in a sector that so desperately needs it.
“Our goal is to ensure older Australians receive safe, equitable and effective care – wherever they live – while reducing the demand on the resource-constrained health system.”
The five-year grant was awarded through the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC).
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