The Faculty of Nursing & Midwifery at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and Leading Healthcare Providers (LHP) Skillnet have today launched a white paper on the future of home support work.

Against a backdrop of a rapidly rising age demographic in Ireland, this white paper, Advancing a Home Support Worker Career Pathway, offers strategic recommendations to policymakers, educators, researchers, home support provider organisations and home support workers (HSWs). The goal is to expand workforce capacity and capabilities of the sector as Ireland becomes a super-aged society, where more than one in five people are aged over 65. Plus, the needs of people with disabilities and young people also have to be considered.

The Central Statistics Office predicts at least one in four people will be over 65 by 2051. Although not everyone needs home support to age independently at home, the Economic and Social Research Institute predicts that demand for home care services could increase by 50% by 2035. An additional 20,000 jobs may be required with different types of new roles emerging.

Today’s white paper proposes the establishment of four knowledge workstreams to build a career pathway for home support workers in Ireland that is fit for purpose and for the future. The knowledge workstreams address the competency framework for home support, multipronged solutions to workforce development, integration of digital technology and data, and the engagement of stakeholders and expertise throughout the process.

The authors propose a minimum framework for implementation of 18 months with detailed steps for its delivery.

Professor Mark White, Executive Dean, Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, RCSI, said: "This white paper is based on extensive robust research and stakeholder engagement. Home support workers, whether they are employed by the Health Service Executive, private providers, or from the voluntary or charity sector, are a crucial component of any integrated health system. They need and deserve a career framework that equips them and rewards them for their experience, knowledge and skills. A world leading home support sector in Ireland will benefit everyone."

Dr Mary Boyd, Dean, Faculty of Nursing & Midwifery, RCSI said: ‘The Board of the Faculty of Nursing & Midwifery is proud to be associated with this credible and timely research. Providing an expert research and evaluation service is part of what we do and the findings in this report will most certainly influence the development of the home support sector going forward."

Carmel Kelly, Managing Director, LHP Skillnet, said: "This white paper is the outcome of what feels like a thousand conversations between LHP Skillnet and our steering group, member companies, stakeholders and collaborators. The impetus for this work has been driven by the rising demand for home support – everything is coming together at the right time to advance the careers and professional development opportunities of home support workers for the benefit of service users and their families."

White paper: Advancing a Home Support Worker Career Pathway was launched today with a roundtable and networking reception at RCSI in Dublin.