Australian & New Zealand Society for Geriatric Medicine

04/09/2026

Older Australians should not be left waiting in hospital because the care they need next is unavailable.

Thousands of older people are experiencing delayed discharge from Australian hospitals while waiting for residential aged care, rehabilitation, transitional care, Support at Home, disability, housing or other community services.

For an older person, that wait can have real consequences. Additional time in an acute hospital can affect mobility, independence, cognition and confidence, particularly for people living with frailty or dementia.

People living with dementia can face particular barriers. Specialist memory support places are limited, some transitional services cannot support people with complex behavioural needs, and families may already have spent months managing increasingly complex care needs with limited respite or support.

ANZSGM is calling for urgent, coordinated action so older people can move safely between hospital, rehabilitation, aged care and home when they are ready.

This includes more transitional and restorative care, greater residential aged care and dementia care capacity, faster access to Support at Home, better respite services for families and carers, and stronger connections between the services responsible for an older person’s care.

ANZSGM President Professor Sue Kurrle AO said:

“Every additional day waiting for the right care can affect an older person’s mobility, independence, cognition and confidence.”

This is ultimately about ensuring older Australians can access appropriate care when and where they need it.

Read ANZSGM’s full position and media statement: https://anzsgm.org/anzsgm-calls-for-urgent-reform-to-address-delayed-hospital-discharge-of-older-people/

The Australian and New Zealand Society for Geriatric Medicine (ANZSGM) is calling for urgent, coordinated action to address the growing number of older Australians remaining in hospital because the…

03/09/2026

ANZSGM has welcomed A Place to Grow Old: Securing the Future of Aged Care, the Ministerial Advisory Group’s report on aged care in New Zealand.

There is much to welcome in the report, including its focus on helping older people remain well and at home for longer, stronger rehabilitation and restorative care, improved dementia care, culturally grounded services and funding that better recognises individual needs.

ANZSGM is also calling for strong clinical safeguards as the recommendations are implemented.

For older people experiencing significant functional decline, timely clinical assessment can identify illness, medication issues and other potentially reversible causes. Access to geriatricians, general practice, rehabilitation and multidisciplinary older people’s health teams should be built into the system across home, hospital and residential care.

ANZSGM NZ Division President Dr Maree Todd said:

“If we want older New Zealanders to stay well and stay home for longer, we need to make sure reversible causes of decline are properly assessed, and that specialist clinical expertise is built into the system rather than added around its edges.”

ANZSGM looks forward to working with the New Zealand Government and the sector as this important reform moves into implementation.

Read ANZSGM’s response: https://anzsgm.org/anzsgm-welcomes-the-release-of-a-place-to-grow-old-securing-the-future-of-aged-care-the-ministerial-advisory-groups-report-on-aged-care-in-new-zealand/

ANZSGM is pleased to see many of its own advocacy priorities reflected in the report, including a stronger focus on ageing well, care at home, rehabilitation and reablement, dementia, equity…

20/08/2026

Good news for older Australians who rely on support to live independently at home.

The Australian Government has confirmed that the Commonwealth Home Support Program (CHSP) will continue until 2029 and remain a standalone program rather than being rolled into Support at Home.

CHSP provides practical, community-based support to around 830,000 older Australians. These services can make an important difference early, helping people maintain their independence and continue living well at home.

ANZSGM President Professor Sue Kurrle AO said:

“For many older people, relatively modest support at the right time can make a real difference to their ability to remain independent and continue living well at home.

“Geriatricians see the consequences when that support is delayed or unavailable. People’s needs can become more complex, sometimes resulting in preventable functional decline, hospitalisation or the need for a higher level of care.”

ANZSGM is proud to be a Foundation Member of the CHSP Alliance, which has advocated strongly for the program to remain a distinct part of Australia’s aged care system.

We welcome this decision and look forward to contributing to the next stage of work on the future of CHSP.

Read the full release:
https://anzsgm.org/anzsgm-welcomes-decision-to-retain-commonwealth-home-support-program/

18/08/2026

This week’s ABC Four Corners investigation into Support at Home has highlighted an issue ANZSGM has been raising for some time: aged care assessments need to reflect the real complexity of ageing.

Older people don’t fit neatly into boxes.

Frailty, cognition, multiple medical conditions, nutrition, continence, sensory impairment, social circumstances and carer support can all affect whether someone can live safely and independently at home.

As ANZSGM President Professor Sue Kurrle AO says, “Frailty is not an optional extra in the assessment of an older person. It is central to geriatric medicine because it tells us about vulnerability, physiological reserve and the risk that a relatively small event can lead to significant decline.”

Four Corners raised serious questions about the Integrated Assessment Tool used to determine Support at Home classifications, including how frailty and cognition influence the outcome and what happens when an assessor’s professional judgement differs from the classification produced by the system.

ANZSGM supports a consistent national assessment system and the appropriate use of technology. But these tools must support, not diminish, clinical judgement.

“If an experienced assessor can see significant frailty, vulnerability or complexity but the system does not allow that clinical judgement to meaningfully affect the outcome, then we have a problem.”

We are calling for transparent, independent clinical review and validation of the IAT, with geriatric medicine expertise involved in its ongoing refinement.

Older Australians deserve an assessment system that recognises their individual needs and gets them the right support before preventable decline becomes a crisis.

Read our full statement on the ANZSGM website: https://anzsgm.org/four-corners-investigation-reinforces-urgent-need-for-clinical-oversight-in-aged-care-assessment/

The Australian and New Zealand Society for Geriatric Medicine (ANZSGM) welcomes the scrutiny brought by ABC Four Corners to Australia’s Support at Home assessment system and the Integrated Assessment…

11/06/2026

In Australia 440,000 people live with the wide-ranging effects of stroke – and another 46,000 people are likely to suffer a stroke in 2026.

Today the Commission published the Stroke Clinical Care Standard (2026), with the latest evidence-based guidance for stroke treatment in hospital and to ease patients’ transition to the community.

The 2026 Standard includes a stronger focus on timely rehabilitation, individualised care planning and follow-up after stroke.

Learn more and download a copy of the Standard here: https://www.safetyandquality.gov.au/resources/stroke-clinical-care-standard-2026

09/06/2026

The federal government's new algorithm-assisted tool has faced scrutiny this week, with Senate Estimates revealing that about a thousand people are asking for a review of their assessment decision - ANZSGM President, Prof. Sue Kurrle has raised concerns about the process.

🎧 Find the full interview here:

Should an algorithm determine how much older Australians receive for in-home care? The federal government’s new algorithm-assisted tool has faced scrutiny this week (Fri 5 June 2026)…

12/05/2026

The release of the draft update to Australia’s Dementia Clinical Practice Guidelines marks an important opportunity for those involved in dementia care to help shape the future direction of clinical practice in Australia. It is the first substantial revision of the guidelines in more than a decade and reflects the rapidly evolving landscape of dementia diagnosis, treatment, and care delivery.

As the peak professional society representing geriatricians across Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand, the ANZSGM welcomes the opportunity for clinicians, researchers, people living with dementia, carers, and the broader community to contribute to this consultation process.

Click the link below for further information and to contribute your feedback🖊️💻

https://anzsgm.org/consultation-now-open-on-the-updated-australian-dementia-clinical-practice-guidelines/

The release of the draft update to Australia’s Dementia Clinical Practice Guidelines marks an important opportunity for those involved in dementia care to help shape the future direction of clinical…

04/05/2026

👋👩‍⚕️👨‍⚕️Clean hands mean safer care. Take action and help raise awareness to protect clinicians, patients and carers this World Hand Hygiene Day.

Find out more and access the resources at safetyandquality.gov.au/WHHD

14/04/2026

Are we properly identifying the support needs of older Australians?

The ANZSGM is concerned that the current My Aged Care Integrated Assessment Tool (IAT) may be missing early signs of frailty and complex health needs. This matters because assessment is what determines the support someone receives.

If needs aren’t fully recognised at the start, people may not get enough help. That can lead to more hospital visits, faster health decline and earlier entry into residential aged care.

Many common issues in older people, like poor nutrition, sensory problems, or gradual frailty, don’t always show up clearly in standard assessments. We believe the assessment tool needs targeted clinical improvements to better capture these risks.

This isn’t about redesigning the system. It’s about making sure it works as intended so older Australians get the right care at the right time.

Better assessment means better care, and better outcomes.

Read the full position and letter to the Minister on the ANZSGM website:

ANZSGM is increasingly concerned that the My Aged Care Integrated Assessment Tool (IAT), in its current form, risks under-identifying frailty, functional vulnerability, and clinical complexity in…