Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40427773›Full record

ArticleInternational journal of environmental research and public health2025

Equitable Care for Older Australians: A Comparative Analysis of Aged Care Workforce Shortages in Metropolitan, Rural, and Remote Australia.

Nicholas Morris, Susan Jaffer, Stacey Ann Rich, Kate Syme-Lamont, Irene D Blackberry

Abstract readComparative Study
In one paragraph

Article in International journal of environmental research and public health, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Educational Needs of Nurses in Remote Islands in Japan Regarding Cancer Pain Management.Journal of cancer education : the official journal of the American Association for Cancer Education · 2026
    Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Nicholas MorrisCare Economy Research Institute, La Trobe University, Wodonga, VIC 3689, Australia.
Susan JafferLaw School, La Trobe University, Melbourne, VIC 3083, Australia.ORCID 0000-0003-1859-0814
Stacey Ann RichJohn Richards Centre for Rural Ageing Research, La Trobe Rural Health School, La Trobe University, Wodonga, VIC 3689, Australia.ORCID 0000-0002-3928-0324
Kate Syme-LamontCare Economy Research Institute, La Trobe University, Wodonga, VIC 3689, Australia.ORCID 0009-0003-9914-9453
Irene D BlackberryCare Economy Research Institute, La Trobe University, Wodonga, VIC 3689, Australia.ORCID 0000-0003-4482-4936

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The Australian Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety has highlighted the chronic shortages of labour to provide care for those aged 65 and over in rural and remote areas of Australia. This descriptive cross-sectional study compares the availability of care provision in metropolitan regions with that in rural and remote regions. We analysed the 2021 Australian Census, grouped according to Aged-Care-Planning Region (ACPR), and investigated the numbers of people aged 65 years and over with different levels of care need, both in residential care and in-home. The available workforce in each ACPR was also examined in detail, using occupational classifications reported in the Census, and shortages of doctors, nurses, allied health and other care workers were identified. Overall, an additional 492,416 care hours were needed per week (or 12,958 full-time equivalent (FTE) care workers) in order to bring remote community ACPRs to parity with provision in metropolitan ACPRs. A further 95,342 FTE workers were needed in rural ACPRs to bring these areas to parity with metropolitan ACPRs. Our findings underscore the ongoing disparities in aged care workforce availability between metropolitan, rural, and remote regions of Australia. Addressing these workforce shortages is crucial to ensuring equitable access to care for older Australians, regardless of their geographical location. The implementation of targeted strategies to enhance workforce recruitment, retention, and training in these underserved areas is essential to bridge the gap and improve the quality of care provided to older adults in rural and remote communities. Such strategies could include targeted recruitment campaigns and incentives for professionals to relocate; further capacity for clinical placements and supervision in rural areas; tailoring funding and employment models for rural needs; and strengthening vocational education in regional areas.

Indexed as

Health Services for the AgedHealth WorkforceRural Health ServicesAgedAustralasian PeopleAustraliaCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHealth Services AccessibilityHumansMaleRural PopulationUrban PopulationWorkforceaged careAustraliaremoteruralworkforce

Identifiers

PMID40427773
PMCPMC12111469

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.