Fix The Leak, Don’t Just Buy Buckets

The Home and Community Health Association (HCHA) welcomes key recommendations from the NZIER Insights report, which calls for increased funding and resourcing of a 21st-century model of community-based healthcare. This approach recognises the crucial role home and community care plays in reducing pressure on hospitals, primary care, aged care facilities, and the overall health system.

HCHA CEO Lisa Foster highlights the urgent need to stabilise and strengthen the sector. "Additional funding is vital to close the significant gap and ensure that in-home care providers can support a healthier future for all New Zealanders," says Foster. "Investing in home and community care will reduce hospital stays, improve health outcomes, and lower system costs, especially as our population ages."

Foster also emphasises the need to value the country's largest mobile workforce, which has immense potential to relieve the current strain on GPs and hospitals. “It makes perfect sense to tap into this workforce to diffuse pressures on the health system, both now and in the future."

HCHA is calling on the Government to prioritise concrete actions ahead of the next election, including co-designing solutions with key stakeholders and NGO partners. A long-term commitment to sustainability and growth in this vital sector will drive innovation, boost productivity, and enhance the efficiency of New Zealand's healthcare system.

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