PROFILE OF HEALTHCARE WORKERS PROVIDING LONG-TERM CARE SERVICES AND THEIR SKILL AND MANPOWER GAPS

Nominated Member of Parliament
Assoc Prof Walter Theseira

To ask the Minister for Health (a) what is the current number of workers providing long-term care services, broken down by nationality, educational qualification or skill level, professional rank, and type of care service; (b) what are the skill and manpower gaps given rising demand; and (c) what are the plans to address such gaps.

Answer

Based on data reported by service providers, in 2018, there were 12,020 workers in Long-Term Care (LTC) providers who received subvention from MOH. Table 1 provides the breakdown by job groups and service types. We do not have details on the educational qualifications and skill level of LTC workers. About 40% of the LTC workforce are locals.

Table 1: Breakdown of workers in LTC providers receiving MOH subvention by job group and type of service (2018)

i) Definitions for job groups: Healthcare professionals refer to doctors, dentists, registered nurses, enrolled nurses, pharmacists, and Allied Health Professionals (AHPs) e.g physiotherapists. Support care staff includes healthcare assistants, nursing and therapy aides. Administrative staff refer to staff who support corporate functions (ie HR, Finance and Operations). Ancillary staff includes housekeeping staff, cooks, drivers and maintenance staff.

ii) Definitions for service types: Residential care refers to nursing homes and inpatient hospice. Centre-based care refers to senior care centres and day hospice. Home-based care refers to home personal care, home medical, home nursing, home palliative and home therapy services. Others include services like dialysis.

iii) Manpower figures are based on Full-Time Equivalents (FTEs)

To meet the growing demand for manpower, we have increased local training places,
in particular for nursing. Nursing intakes in ITE, the polytechnics, and the autonomous
universities have collectively increased by 30% from around 1,600 in 2013 to over 2,100
in 2018, the highest intake to date.

The Agency for Integrated Care (AIC) has also partnered LTC providers to hold recruitment events, with more than 1,000 locals joining the community care sector in 2018. We are also working with LTC partners to improve healthcare productivity by adopting technology and assistive equipment, streamlining existing work processes, and facilitating bulk procurement of shared products and services to achieve manpower savings. As our population ages, there will be increased demand for healthcare professionals who are trained in areas such as geriatric care, management of complex chronic conditions and end-of-life care.

To develop and upskill the LTC workforce, AIC- appointed learning institutes offer subsidised training in areas ranging from clinical skills to leadership and people management. In addition, the Community Care Manpower Development Award (CCMDA) offers scholarships for those working or wishing to work in the LTC sector to pursue the relevant advanced skills training. Lastly, the newly launched Skills Framework for Healthcare and Social Service maps out the job roles and needed competencies in healthcare, and helps employers to identify skills gaps and develop workplace-based skills training to meet changing industry needs.