Innovation grants target workforce complexities
Funding of $3 million for accelerator grants and two flagship projects has been announced by ARIIA to bolster provider collaboration and create evidence-based solutions for aged care.
Aged Care Research and Industry Innovation Australia has announced a new round of accelerator grants are open for applications.
To address the increasingly complex nature of care, driven by increased lifespans and more people wanting to age in place, these accelerator grants direct $1 million to projects that augment the aged care workforce to deliver specialist care, support, knowledge and resources to where they’re needed.
Projects are eligible to receive $100,000 via one grant round for addressing workforce and skills shortages in new ways, including the use of digital or assistive technology, telehealth or innovative workforce and human service models. There is a requirement for a matched co-contribution, either cash or in-kind and applications must include an aged care organisation and a research organisation.
ARIIA program and research director Dr Rebecca Bilton said the rapidly growing demand for aged care services and increasing complexity of the industry had stretched the workforce across broader geographical areas, with limited access to the specialist skills needed to support place-based or high-quality care that could meet the scale needed in the future.
The accelerator grants will provide an opportunity to test an evidenced solution for projects that address these challenges, allowing the project to be tested in a different setting, location or with a different group of care recipients.
In the past, ARIIA grants have been awarded for projects targeting employee burnout, clinical pathway trials for dementia care, automated shower systems, deployable hearing assessment technology, community-dwelling for people living with dementia and sleep intervention training, among others.
The Accelerator Grant stream is part of ARIIA’s new Aged Care Collaborative, which also includes $2 million for two Flag Ship projects.
Dr Bilton said the Flagship Projects stream presented a unique opportunity for providers to collaborate and implement innovative workforce solutions.
“This collaboration will involve sharing processes, progress, lessons learned, and outcomes, ultimately offering valuable evidence and insights that can be implemented at scale across different aged care contexts. The focus will be on understanding the factors that influence acceptability, adaptability, and sustainability,” she said.
“Each Flagship Project topic has been carefully chosen to address key workforce challenges that will benefit from a collaborative approach.”
Flagship Project 1 will implement an evidence-based leadership model that optimises workforce structures and organisational culture to prepare for and be capable of delivering reform and complex change while Flagship Project 2 will build the capability of the workforce to better understand, interpret and use data within their organisation to improve care.
Following the application process, selected organisations will be expected to match the funding with cash or in-kind co-contributions.
Applications for the Accelerator Grants can be accessed here.
Application forms for the Flagship Projects will become available 11 March and can be found here.
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