A survey that asked Australians their opinions of ageing and the aged care system has found that almost all of those surveyed felt that society had an obligation to look after older people.
The survey, What Australians Think of Ageing and Aged Care, was conducted by Roy Morgan researchers for the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety.
The survey asked adults for their views about older Australians (aged 70 years and over), the current aged care system, and what they would want should they need aged care themselves.
It was conducted by phone between October 2019 and January this year and recorded 10,518 completed interviews.
It found that adults of all ages overwhelming had a positive perspective towards people aged 70 and over.
“Over 90% agreed that older Australians have value to society for a range of reasons such as their work, knowledge and experience, and time spent volunteering to families and communities,” the Survey’s executive summary stated.
“These attitudes were consistent across all age groups.
“Almost all people also rejected negative attitudes towards older people.
“Almost all agreed that society has an obligation to look after older people and care for them.
It found that nearly half of adults believed the Government should be most responsible for paying for the “lower level support” services needed by older people to continue living independently in their own homes.
It also found that overall, the community’s perception of life in residential aged care was very negative.
“They think the residents are often lonely, do not have control over their lives and are not happy, but have access to medical care and are safe in comfortable, well maintained accommodation.”
It said the community was divided about whether aged care residents receive the help they need with daily activities, whether they are respected, and whether there were enough activities available to them.
“Around 84% of adults participating in the survey had visited a residential aged care facility at some time in their lives and these people tended to have slightly more positive perceptions than those who had never visited.”
It found that the most favourable views were held by people who knew someone living in an aged care facility and visited them at least weekly.
“These people were more likely to agree that the accommodation is comfortable and well maintained; that the residents are safe, happy, respected and given good quality food; and that there are enough activities to keep people entertained.”
“However, these people still had a quite a low opinion of facilities overall and nearly all believed residents are often lonely.
When asked about aged care funding, most people surveyed thought the Government’s contribution towards aged care was 60% or less, whereas it is actually currently around 78%.
Experience, expectations and preferences for older Australians living in their own home generally had a very positive view of their lives, the survey found.
“More than 90% saw themselves as healthy and able to take care of themselves, while around 85% felt that they were still physically able to do the things in life they like to do and have the freedom to spend time doing those things.”
“Over three-quarters thought they had enough money to live comfortably. Almost all said they make lifestyle choices to keep themselves healthy.”
The Royal Commission says it is fundamentally important to understand these views when considering the current aged care system and how to reform it to meet the needs of Australians in the future.
Read the full research paper at this link: https://agedcare.royalcommission.gov.au/sites/default/files/2020-07/research_paper_4_-_what_australians_think_of_ageing_and_aged_care.pdf
