The emergence of health information in aged care.

Abstract

Aged care in Australia has historically operated in the shadow of health care. However, recent dramatic changes have raised the profile of aged care into the spotlight, due largely to the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the older population and the alarming findings of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality (2021). However, the impetus for change had already been intensifying. Policy development, regulation and funding of aged care services is the responsibility of the Australian Government (Australian Government Department of Health, 2021: 9). Since the late 1990s, in response to the challenges associated with the expanding population of older people, Government policy has aimed to keep people living at home for as long as possible by increasing funding for care and service delivery in the home and community (Australian Government Aged Care Financing Authority, 2020: 7). With residential aged care only being available for those with the highest level of care needs, there has been an increasing complexity in the needs of older people living in the community. Consequently, there is a heavy reliance on a broad range of aged care services for thosewho are living in their own homes, and increased acuity in the needs of residents in care. The result is an aged care sector of many fragmented parts, which presents a myriad of difficulties for older people and their families, for aged care providers, and indeed for governments in planning, funding, and managing services (Davis et al., 2017). To ensure older people have choice and access to appropriate and timely care that delivers the most optimal outcomes, there is a critical need for improvement in aged care health information systems (Sendall et al., 2017). A Virtual Special Issue of the Health Information Management Journal on The Emergence of Health Information in Aged Care, guest edited by Carol Loggie and Jenny Davis, includes recent articles that explore different aspects of information systems and technologies for aged care across three main themes: considerations for the needs and key issues of health information in aged care; innovation and progress in the sector; and future opportunities (see Box 1). Together they highlight the key issues and provide a comprehensive overview of the current context and implications for the future. Considerations for health information in aged care: needs and key issues at three levels