Abstract
To meet the ever growing care needs of the ageing population Australia continues to undergo policy reforms and reviews into the performance, equity, sustainability and fairness of the aged care sector (Grove, 2019). Informal care arrangements are consistently cited to be important contributors to the aged care sector. However, with changes in demographics and family structures there has been growing concern about the availability of informal care givers (Deloitte Access Economics & Australia, 2015; Hodgkin, 2014; Nepal et al., 2011). The implications this has on potentially contributing to inequalities is an area of growing interest international researchers yet remains relatively understudied in the Australian context.This study explores informal care patterns of older Australians of low socioeconomic status receiving in home care, consistent and comparable to a number of international studies. Understanding the complexities of aged care patterns requires an understanding of the social context of aged care policy in Australia. This is done through a review of the literature and policy in the aged care area in Australia. The thesis then uses multiple logistic regression analysis and multinominal logistic regression to assess the relationship between socioeconomic status and patterns of informal care use for older Australians (65 years and older), while also including formal care and a combination of informal/ formal care for a comprehensive analysis. To understand the influence on shifts in aged care policy on patterns of care use of low socioeconomic status the thesis identifies key reforms between 2009- 2018 and their impacts on socioeconomic status of older Australians.
| Date of Award | 2024 |
|---|---|
| Original language | English |
| Supervisor | Riyana MIRANTI (Supervisor), Yogi VIDYATTAMA (Supervisor) & Robert TANTON (Supervisor) |