How interoperability in New Zealand aged care can ease pressure on providers

FEATURE - Industry Innovation Article - Dell Technologies, Leanne Buer, Country Manager, NZ

New Zealand’s older generation, aged 65 and over, stood at 715,200 in 2018. By 2043, that number is projected to almost double, accounting for 23.1 per cent of the total population. The future belongs to senior New Zealanders, yet alarmingly, data shows that the aged care system is struggling to keep pace.

The issue doesn’t stop with New Zealand. We’re experiencing a global crisis of chronic diseases, with the Global Burden of Disease Collaborative Network 2020 revealing the percentage of deaths from chronic diseases has risen from 67 per cent in 2010 to 74 per cent in 2019. Public health systems worldwide are failing to stem the rise in highly preventable risk factors, leaving aging populations vulnerable.

Locally, residential aged care homes are experiencing persistent government underfunding, with beds being closed throughout New Zealand because providers are unable to cover expenses or recruit and retain registered nurses (RNs). Nurses are being actively recruited by District hospitals, offering remuneration that aged care providers are not funded to match. The lack of funding ultimately results in limited access to support and substandard care.

As the New Zealand senior population grows, its aged care system must grow with it. While government funding is critical, technology will also play a vital role in augmenting the existing healthcare workforce. Leveraging aged care data and streamlining information sharing systems can help ease pressures and prioritise residents’ safety, dignity, and privacy.

The state of technology in aged care
Technology is a key enabler of better healthcare – it underpins the aged care sector’s communication and business systems and the direct provision of care. Whether individuals receive support at home or in an aged care facility, evolutions in digital technology shape the care they receive.

New Zealand’s providers are carefully watching the scenario created by the Aged Care Royal Commission report in Australia. The report found that the aged care system in Australia is well behind other sectors for research, innovation, and the use of new technologies. Although New Zealand’s aged care sector has not been investigated formally, the market dynamics here are very similar, and the sector has not received the investment necessary to ready it for the aging population.

While assistive technologies, linked IoT devices, and advancements in AI can improve the daily lives of senior New Zealanders, the effective management of data is the foundation for better care.

The Ministry of Health’s 2020 Interoperability Roadmap supports this. It identifies that digital health can transform the outcomes and experience of consumers if information is shared seamlessly. Aged care providers and other healthcare organisations need to be able to access relevant data when they need it to support the delivery of services. The roadmap, along with the appointment of New Zealand’s first Aged Care Commissioner, is encouraging, but there’s still a long way to go.

While the New Zealand government has earmarked $600 million in its 2022 budget to invest in the health system's digital infrastructure, the Digital Health Association noted that the current system is limited in its ability to share data.

Interoperability, standardisation, improvements in data quality, and the development of real-time and automated systems are vital to enabling better services while easing the pressure of understaffing in aged care homes. Reduced administration time means available staff could instead spend that time on delivering quality, personalised care.

Interoperability of systems
Senior New Zealanders are likely to use multiple services to meet their complex care needs – including private general practitioners, allied health professionals, and aged care support providers. These different services may maintain their own clinical records, whether paper-based or digital, meaning the individual’s information is not shared completely and freely between services. If the person lives in an aged care facility, their data may be integrated with the facility’s records using outdated and inefficient means like fax machines, photocopying, or copying and pasting from an email.

Regardless of where or how the information is recorded, the sector does not suffer from a lack of data. Medication prescriptions, clinical history, care plans, handover notes, and other essential information are stringently collected and stored. But due to the siloed nature of digital systems and the lack of agreed data exchange standards and protocols, the sector can’t use the data effectively. Though this data paradox affects businesses across all industries, the issue is far more pressing for aged care, where the use of data directly affects the lives of our seniors.

Different digital record-storing systems need to be interoperable to facilitate the seamless and efficient sharing of information. Tools like secure cloud storage solutions and as-a-service offerings are invaluable for the aged care sector, giving providers the data they need when and where they need it – without time-poor staff having to spend time managing complex systems. Improved data sharing is vital to inform the sector's research, resource management, and regulation and to pilot and measure change; however, it best serves our seniors when leveraged for their immediate care. If record-keeping systems were connected and all data was accessible in real-time – aged care providers could meet the needs of each unique individual and offer the highest quality of care possible.

Interoperable systems can improve care in numerous ways: they reduce the risk of communication errors, limit time spent on non-direct care tasks, and maintain patient privacy by cutting the need for clinical staff to update records. Crucially, they give care nurses, support workers, and health providers the up-to-date data they need to quickly assess an individual’s needs and deliver person-centred care. Ultimately, better data sharing means improved quality of life for our seniors and optimal outcomes.

Safety, dignity, privacy
Prioritising the safety, dignity, and privacy of our older New Zealanders means valuing the information we collect from them and using it to their best advantage. Improving the availability and reliability of clinical data through the interoperability of digital systems will deliver better outcomes by enabling smarter ways of working, continuous improvement, and innovation based on informed, measurable, data-driven decisions.

Aging and disease aren’t synonymous; by leveraging the power of aged care data, we can improve the current level of service, support healthy aging, and ensure our aged care sector can weather the challenges of our aging population.

If you would like to provide feedback on the above feature article please contact the editor Rebecca McBeth.

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