Indicators of job quality in the Australian aged care workforce: A scoping review

Objective As governments grapple with ageing populations, there is a need to understand more about the aged care workforce and how it is managed. Methods We undertook a scoping review according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) guidelines. Scopus and PubMed were used to identify papers published between 2010 and 2020. We mapped the breadth and scale of the evidence base according to the QuInnE indicators of job quality. Results Out of 642 titles and abstracts that were screened, 122 were selected. Outcomes were measured across a range of domains, including wages, employment quality, education and training, working conditions, work/life balance and consultative participation and collective representation. These were distributed unevenly, revealing evidence gaps. Conclusions We identified significant knowledge gaps regarding Australia's aged care workforce at a time when the sector is coming under fresh scrutiny and projections indicate that it will face critical labour shortfalls going forward.