Last week, I was fascinated by the Fin Review’s latest ‘Lunch with the AFR’ interview with Chris Blake, CEO of St Vincent’s Health Australia. His prediction? Australian hospitals, in their current form, have only about five years left to survive – and the aged care sector may face collapse even sooner.
You can read the piece here if you have a subscription.
Blake points out the combination of chronic disease and an ageing population will make the system unsustainable in just five years.
His argument – an unlikely one for a hospital executive – is that Australia doesn’t need more hospitals but a complete rethinking of how healthcare is structured.
His solution?
A national model inspired by St Vincent’s integrated system, which combines public and private hospitals, aged care, disability services, and more. This system would utilise a mixed funding approach, replacing the fragmented structure with a more efficient allocation of the same overall budget.
While the proposal is radical, it is exactly what the system needs. However, it will fail unless governments acknowledge the root problem: the current siloed structure is ineffective.
Right now, hospitals are often the default option because there are few alternatives – except for residential aged care if you can find a bed. A CEO I spoke with recently shared their facilities are seeing an increasing number of acutely ill patients discharged to make room for new admissions.
We already know that models like Hospital in the Home, virtual care, and preventive health can produce positive outcomes. These approaches often remain unfunded and overlooked.
There have been some encouraging signs from Governments. In March, the re-elected WA State Government reshuffled its health portfolio to include aged care, preventative health, and infrastructure – but tangible action is still lacking.
Interestingly, Blake’s background isn’t in medicine – it’s in transformation and highlights the kind of forward-thinking needed now.
If we don’t act soon, we won’t just be managing a health and aged care crisis – we’ll be explaining why we allowed the system to collapse.
