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How can ARIIA support the workforce to implement evidence-based practice change in Australian Aged Care?

​Paul Ross, Librarian & Information Specialist, ARIIA
Dr Stephanie Champion, Research Fellow, ARIIA

Understanding what drives success in aged care is essential for implementing evidence-based improvements. The process of gathering information, evaluating its reliability, and determining its relevance to your specific needs can be complex and overwhelming! Where do you start? It requires a solid understanding of evidence-based practice and an understanding about how to put that into action. An evidence-based approach integrates the best available evidence, professional expertise, and knowledge of your specific care setting—whether residential or home-based—while also considering consumer perspectives and preferences. Fortunately for the sector, this is what ARIIA have expertise in, and our mandate is to build up these capabilities in the aged care workforce to drive practice change together.

The definition of "best" evidence may vary depending on what you are looking for and the type or quality of the available studies. While ‘systematic’ and ‘umbrella’ reviews are often regarded by researchers as the best sources, they may not always address your specific needs, contexts, or provide you with the practical information you’re looking for. In such cases, it becomes necessary to explore a wider range of sources and to learn the tricks to be able to critically assess the strengths and limitations of each source, to ensure you’re using evidence, that is fit for purpose.

Overall, the variables of evidence-based practice in aged care include:

  • Define the Problem: Clearly describe the issue you aim to address. Consider any contextual or organisational factors that may impact your approach, such as environmental constraints, budget limitations, timelines, and securing support from leadership.
  • Plan Your Approach: Identify and assess the quality of appropriate information sources, develop a plan for what change you are going to implement, and include methods to test its safety and effectiveness in addressing the original problem.
  • Implement and Evaluate: Follow your plan and implement the change and collect data on progress and process along the way so that you can tell if you are making a difference. Be prepared to revisit and update your plans periodically to ensure ongoing relevance and success.

To effectively use evidence and drive change, you will need specific skills, access to reliable and up-to-date evidence sources, and an overall research and implementation plan. To support this process, ARIIA offers various programs and services designed to guide you through the complexities of identifying evidence-based solutions for your practice needs, seeking to save you time and give you access to some of the most relevant sources related to aged care in Australia.

The Knowledge and Implementation Hub (KIH) provides a vast amount of free online information and resources to support the process of evidence-based practice, these include:

Finally, ARIIA provides the Innovation Capability Program offering the aged care workforce training, support and guidance needed to change the way things are done and build up their transferable skills. The program helps to develop solutions grounded in evidence, to ensure meaningful, impactful and sustainable results. The program supports you to define your problem, provides information and guidance into searching and using evidence, while enabling you to consider implementation barriers and plan for project success. Applications for a new round of training are now open for more information contact the ICP team.

 

*The views and opinions expressed in Knowledge Blogs are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of ARIIA, Flinders University and/or the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care.

Strategies to recruit and retain volunteers in the aged care setting

Dr​ Meg Polacsek

Senior Research Fellow, ARIIA

Across Australia, volunteer numbers are in steady decline, with organisations facing significant short- and long-term challenges when it comes to recruiting and retaining formal volunteers (that is, people who willingly give their time for the common good and without financial gain). These include increased ‘red tape’, an uncertain financial climate and an apparent reluctance of volunteers to commit to regular, formal roles. In addition, the impact of COVID-19 on volunteering will be felt for years to come: while almost two thirds of volunteers were lost at the height of the pandemic, many of those who remained or returned are spending fewer hours in the role. 

With high workloads and limited resources, residential aged care providers often turn to volunteers to provide much-needed ‘non-critical’ social and emotional support to their residents. Compared to other healthcare settings, volunteers in residential aged care tend to form long and close relationships with residents. By offering important support functions that may otherwise not be delivered, aged care volunteers have a positive effect on residents’ quality of life and overall wellbeing. The resident/volunteer relationship is particularly important for older adults lacking the support of family or friends, and whose involvement in meaningful activities may depend on the support of volunteers.

It is for this reason then that aged care volunteers may have a specific motivation compared to, say, those in a hospital setting, where they often perform ‘meet and greet’ functions, help with hospitality services or serve as porters. 

So, how do we best go about recruiting and retaining volunteers? Free, easily accessible resources are available to inform volunteer recruitment and retention. However, few specifically address volunteering in aged care. 

Informed by our systematic review, we summarised a set of strategies to optimise volunteer recruitment and retention in residential aged care. Perhaps the most critical step is to identify their motivations. According to our review, volunteers were motivated most by the practical benefits and self-satisfaction of volunteering. They want to be matched to and trained in specific resident programs. And they are particularly interested in sharing of animals and animal-assisted therapy. 

When it comes to recruiting, aged care providers should present a broad concept of the volunteer role and function, to recruit diverse volunteers. Ideally (‘magic wand’ scenario), they should employ a volunteer coordinator to recruit, screen, train and support, supervise, and evaluate volunteers. Providers should also establish a management structure that accommodates the volunteer program within their overall care programs.

Tips for retaining volunteers include:

  • Signing a contract and/or statement of commitment that describe the volunteer’s tasks and expectations for performance, while creating realistic expectations
  • Matching volunteers to tasks that interest them and/or match their skills, and connecting them with other volunteers and residents
  • Providing appropriate training on the role, organisational mission, knowledge of residents' physical and cognitive status (eg dementia), skills and techniques to manage challenging situations
  • Using technology, such as email and social media networks, to communicate with volunteers.

Finally, aged care providers should ideally provide opportunities for volunteers to work in a range of roles, and a sense of 'ownership' by involving volunteers in role and task planning.

Optimising the vital volunteer resource takes money, time and effort, but not all of these strategies require significant costs. And with the right strategies in place, we should be able to achieve significant returns on our investment of time, effort and money, while improving residents’ quality of life.

 

*The views and opinions expressed in Knowledge Blogs are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of ARIIA, Flinders University and/or the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care.

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