Can I begin by acknowledging the Arrernte people, the Traditional Custodians of the land we meet on today, and pay my respects to Elders past and present.
For tens of thousands of years, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities have held deep knowledge of care, kinship, and ageing.
As we look to the future of aged care, we have so much to learn from a culture where connection, healing and responsibility are shared across generations.
It’s wonderful to be here in Alice Springs with the people who understand better than almost anyone that ageing well is a collective effort – clinicians, researchers, advocates, carers and older Australians themselves all pulling in the same direction.
Thank you to the Australian Association of Gerontology for inviting me to be part of your conference, and for everything you do to make Australia’s ageing story one of progress, not decline.
I speak a bit about how the people who work across aged care and with seniors are a really special type of human being, and it’s pretty humbling to be in a room with the best of the best of them today.
At the outset, can I just say an enormous thank you for the work you do.
Good aged care does not happen in the big pieces of legislation or the press conferences or the funding decisions (though I know they are always welcome!).
It happens quietly, in every corner of our country.
In the early hours of every morning, long into the evening – when a nurse checks in on someone recovering from surgery before dawn, when a carer shares a meal and a story late in the evening, or when a physiotherapist helps an older person regain the confidence to walk again.
And I’m so pleased I can be here to tell you how deeply I, and our Government, value the work you and your colleagues do.
Your theme this year could not be more timely.
Because right now, clinical leadership is central to one of the biggest reforms our country has seen – the transformation of aged care.
Just over a week ago, Australia entered a new era of aged care with the commencement of the new Aged Care Act.
It’s a once-in-a-generation reform that puts the rights and dignity of older people at its core, and it recognises something fundamental: aged care and health care are not separate worlds.
Older Australians move between and within these systems every day – from hospitals to home care, GPs to residential care, community nurses to specialists.
How well those systems engage with each other often determines how well a person lives.
We’ve all seen what happens when those systems don’t connect – a patient discharged on Friday with no follow-up until Monday, the community nurse working without shared notes.
These are the moments better integration can fix. It’s not just an administrative idea, it’s the difference between a prevented fall and an unnecessary hospitalisation.
That’s why one of the most important shifts in this new Act is the creation of a more integrated system – where aged care is an integral part of the continuum of healthcare, not an endpoint people are sent to afterwards.
Clinicians are the bridge that makes that possible. You see what integration really means in practice.
With the new Act, we’re embedding that connection through:
- stronger clinical governance, clearer pathways between primary care and aged care, and data systems that help clinicians share information securely across settings;
- And with new roles in the system – like clinical leads, care coordinators, allied health specialists – to make sure the person, not the program, is at the centre.
Integration also means shared accountability.
Aged care doesn’t sit on the periphery of health; it’s part of a broader ecosystem that includes hospitals, GPs, community health and prevention.
When we get that interface right, we improve outcomes for patients and reduce pressure across the entire health system.
Through legislation, we have built the scaffold of the system we all want to see, but it is the people in this room who make it a reality through your clinical leadership.
Innovation isn’t only about technology – it’s about curiosity and courage. It’s about clinicians challenging the status quo to find better ways of delivering care.
Reading the program from your conference, it’s clear that that passion for always doing things a little better, or going out of your way to try something a bit left-of-centre, is thriving here.
From digital brain health apps to complementary therapies like music and art, and from virtual geriatric care to new models of cognitive assessment – you’re leading the way in improving not just physical health, but social, emotional and cultural wellbeing.
As well as in diagnosis and treatment, we’re seeing innovation at the front line of prevention:
Telehealth assessments that pick up early frailty, wearable devices that flag mobility changes, and smart home monitoring that supports independence.
Each is a small step towards a future where ageing well is accessible to everyone, not a select few.
As our government works with states and territories to develop a National Allied Health Workforce Strategy, it’s my hope we can strengthen that advanced, multidisciplinary care and connect it to hospitals, GPs and community settings.
And of course, we’re backing the workforce – you are both the drivers and then the deliverers of this innovation.
Almost $18 billion in wage rises since we were elected have improved retention and morale, and begun to value and recognise aged care for the highly skilled discipline we know it is - but more importantly, they’ve made it easier for clinicians to deliver quality care.
When you value people, quality follows.
We’ve introduced new training and scholarship pathways to attract nursing staff into aged care, from Certificate III all the way to Masters degrees – because reform can’t work without a workforce that’s skilled, supported and inspired to stay.
That’s especially true in the regions, where nurses in particular play an extra-critical role in healthcare.
Our government is investing nearly $31 million to attract and support more than 6,000 extra skilled aged care workers in rural and regional Australia, and more than $20 million to upskill 4,000 extra personal care workers to provide home care.
We want dedicated, passionate people to join the sector, and then to stay and help deliver the care older Australians need - and we’re committed to tackling those workforce challenges that are particularly acute in rural and remote parts of the country like the one we’re in today.
The most powerful form of innovation is leadership. It’s clinicians shaping new models of care, mentoring the next generation, and using evidence to drive reform from the coalface.
You’re not just responding to this reform – you’re making it real.
But reform isn’t complete unless it works for everyone.
The new Act embeds a Statement of Rights for older people, but of course they only matter when they move from a page in a rule book to lived experience.
That means culturally safe, trauma-aware care for First Nations Elders. It means inclusion for people in rural and remote communities, for those with diverse backgrounds, languages and identities, and people with intersecting and complex needs.
We know there’s more to do to Close the Gap and ensure Elders live well later in life, and to do so reflecting the way Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities care for their Elders – locally, holistically and on Country.
Our government is committed to working in partnership with communities – listening, learning and acting together to make this system work for every Australian.
Inclusion also means ensuring the clinical workforce itself reflects the diversity of the people it serves.
Whether it’s a bilingual nurse explaining medication in someone’s first language, or an Aboriginal health worker guiding care on Country – representation in the workforce is part of what makes care genuinely person-centred.
We’re also reframing how we talk about ageing itself.
I have no doubt that everyone in this room occasionally laments that too often, ageing is discussed only when something goes wrong. But positive ageing begins long before someone needs care.
We know staying active, connected and engaged has more impact on health outcomes than almost any clinical intervention.
Loneliness is one of the biggest risks facing older Australians – but it’s also one of the most solvable.
Governments can’t legislate social connection—but we can build the conditions that make it easier: strong local communities, accessible transport, inclusive digital technology, and lifelong learning programs that keep people engaged.
Positive ageing isn’t just about extending life, it’s about enriching it.
That’s what this entire reform agenda is about: building a system that lets people age with dignity, purpose and joy.
Clinicians are leading that change.
You’re the ones translating policy into practice, innovation into outcomes, and reform into real-world improvement.
I say this not to add pressure to your already exhausting workloads, but to once again share my gratitude and my hope that the opportunities we have ahead of us, together, excite you as much as they motivate me.
The new Aged Care Act gives us the framework, but it’s your leadership that will determine whether the system truly delivers on its promise.
Together we can build a system where health and aged care are not two chapters, but one continuous story – where every Australian, wherever they live, can age well, connected and cared for.