The University of the Sunshine Coast will provide university students with a work opportunity through a partnership with home care provider Comlink, while also filling staffing gaps and helping older people in the region remain living in their homes for longer.
The collaboration is aimed at helping to address major workforce shortages in aged care in the region.
Comlink Australia supports clients to live independently in their own homes, providing services to more than 5,000 clients across Queensland, including Fraser Coast, Gympie, Sunshine Coast and Moreton Bay.
UniSC Vice-Chancellor and President Professor Helen Bartlett said the partnership was a “fantastic alignment of regional community goals” that would benefit both students and clients.
Professor Bartlett, who has a research background in aged care, said there was enormous demand for careers and employment that allowed people to remain living regionally.
“With the aged care sector facing a national shortage of 110,000 direct care staff over the next decade, it makes sense to work on closing this skills gap in our regions,” she said. “Estimates suggest the industry could be short of 400,000 workers by 2050 if we continue doing things the way they have always been done.”
The collaboration will begin initially at the Fraser Coast and Gympie campuses but has the potential to expand over time.
The opportunities with Comlink will be available to nursing and aged care students, but will also extend to students in business, IT, accounting, marketing and more.
Comlink Australia’s Chief Executive Dr Liam Mayo said, “As a community aged care provider, we see ourselves as providing community development and workforce solutions, so we are working with the university to highlight pathways to employment.”
“For example, you could become a driver taking people to appointments or to do their shopping, and study at the same time, gaining qualifications and working towards your degree.”
Dr Mayo completed his PhD at UniSC and studied how to achieve better business outcomes while also addressing larger challenges such as funding, health, and sustainability.
