Clinical

An early flu season is raising risks for aged care, with new research linking infections to long-term decline. For providers, the challenge is no longer just prevention, but anticipating and managing compounding risk.

Sector-led education is reshaping how aged care approaches psychotropic medication use. New micro-learning modules are helping frontline staff move from confusion to confidence, translating complex guidelines into practical, safer care for people living with dementia.

Aged care providers move closer to a standardised approach to medication management as all eNRMC vendors pass conformance. What the 2026 deadline means for systems, workflows and risk.

Voluntary assisted dying is now law across most of Australia. But for the staff working in aged care, the reality is far more complex than legislation alone. Here’s what actually happens when a resident raises VAD and how it affects everyone involved.

AI scribes that can “see” as well as hear are delivering significant gains in clinical documentation accuracy, but their real impact will depend on how they are implemented. As multimodal AI enters healthcare workflows, aged care providers face new opportunities alongside new risks.

Medication harm in aged care is well understood, yet it continues to drive preventable injury and hospitalisation. New Monash research introduces the OZ-ABCD tool to identify high-risk medications, but the real challenge lies in turning knowledge into consistent clinical practice.

GPs are calling on the Tasmanian Government to redirect $5 million from pharmacy prescribing pilots into embedding pharmacists in residential aged care facilities, arguing it would improve medication safety without increasing spending.

Researchers from the National Ageing Research Institute have developed a co-designed online course supporting carers of people living with dementia who experience incontinence. The course has reached more than 5,000 learners globally, highlighting the growing demand for practical, dignity-focused continence education in aged care.

The Senate Committee has recommended legislation enabling designated registered nurses to prescribe PBS medicines from July 2026. Aged care providers are examining what the reform could mean for medication access, workforce pressure and funding clarity.

Monash University and Flinders University have released a practical guide to help aged care leaders establish quality improvement collaboratives to strengthen medication management and governance across sites.