Govt releases Home Care Workforce Support Program survey for providers and employees 

Home care providers and workers have three weeks to respond to the Government’s new Home Care Workforce Support Program (HCWSP) survey to ensure they understand all the details and variations within the workforce. 

Key points

• The Home Care Workforce Support Program provides funding for six organisations across Australia to help aged care providers attract, train and retain new and existing personal care workers in home care
• Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP) providers and residential aged care providers located in Modified Monash categories 3-7 are also eligible for support
• Two new surveys have been released for providers and workers to better understand how the HCWSP is meeting home care provider workforce needs and how it could be improved

The Government introduced the HCWSP as a targeted solution to supporting training and education organisations across Australia which can then work with home care providers to strengthen their workforces. 

Each of the six supported organisations receives funding to not only raise awareness of career opportunities within aged care but to screen potential workers for the right skills and attributes. 

New and existing personal care workers can also benefit from training subsidies and work placement opportunities, a sometimes challenging task for workers entering the sector. Recruitment and human resourcing support provide ongoing support to combat workforce attrition while upskilling staff seeking career growth opportunities.

However, with a range of ever-changing obstacles and requirements within home care, the Government is seeking feedback to determine how the HCWSP is impacting providers’ workforces thus far. 

“This survey seeks to understand the needs and experiences of home care providers delivering services to older people living in their homes. Your responses will help us understand the extent to which the HCWSP is meeting home care provider workforce needs, and how it could be improved,” the survey stated.

“The survey should be completed at an organisation level and can be completed by staff including general/service managers, workforce and training managers, staff within capacity building organisations, and others.”

The survey itself is designed to be completed at three separate points in time to understand the program’s progress and development. The current stage is accepting submissions until March 29.

Home care providers can complete their survey here while home care workers, including personal care workers, allied health assistants and enrolled nurses, can complete their survey here.