Twenty aged care nurses and residents have gone to Canberra to speak with MPs and senators about increased funding for aged care.

The visit to the nation’s capital was organised by the Australian Nursing Federation (ANF) as part of its campaign to put the focus on aged care in the 2010-11 budget.

The ANF’s federal secretary, Ged Kearney said that recent projections about the ageing population in the federal government’s intergenerational report demonstrated the need for more aged care nurses.

“High need residents will suffer greatly if there is only one nurse for every 30, 60, 90 or 120 residents,” said Ms Kearney. “This generation can’t sit on their hands and do nothing.

“Budget 2010 provides a real opportunity for the federal government to stop the long term slide in the number of nurses and carers working in aged care.”

The Royal College of Nursing Australia (RCNA) has also highlighted the need for reform in aged care in its 2010 budget submission.

It said the government must help establish more specialised nursing roles throughout Australia before real health reform is achieved.

“Like all Australians, we are very concerned that our health system is not equipped to accommodate the often comprehensive needs of our rapidly expanding, ageing population,” said the RCNA’s CEO, Debra Cerasa FRCNA.