Wisconsin’s elder care system is expected to face significant strain as the number of baby boomers reaching the age of 75 is projected to increase in the coming years. This will necessitate the addition of approximately 10,000 more workers to the industry.
A recent report from Forward Analytics, the research branch of the Wisconsin Counties Association, sheds light on the impact of the state’s aging population on elder care facilities.
According to the report, Wisconsin’s nursing home and assisted living beds were able to accommodate the growth in the population of people aged 75 or older from 2000 to 2020.
According to the report, the baby boom generation’s oldest members reached the age of 75 in 2021. In Wisconsin, it is projected that the number of residents aged 75 and above will increase by 41 percent by 2030. Furthermore, by 2040, there is an additional estimated growth of 24 percent in the 75-plus population.
Kevin Dospoy, deputy director of Forward Analytics, expressed concern about the rapid growth of the population in the next 15 years. He believes that the number of beds available may not be able to keep up with this growth.
According to the report, Wisconsin will require approximately 33,000 additional elder care beds by 2030 to meet the growing demand. In the subsequent decade, an additional 26,500 beds will be needed. Dospoy expressed concerns about the potential strain that the system would face.
According to the report, it is not only important to increase the capacity of elder care facilities to cater to the needs of an aging population, but also to ensure that these facilities have sufficient staff to deliver high-quality care.
By 2030, Wisconsin will require an additional 9,900 registered nurses, certified nursing assistants, and home health aides to uphold the existing standard of care provided in nursing homes and assisted living facilities.
According to projections from the state Department of Workforce Development, there is an expected total growth of 12,800 among all nurses, CNAs, and home health aides by the end of the decade.
According to the Forward Analytics report, the elder care sector would need approximately 75 percent of the projected growth, even though it currently employs only about 20 percent of those occupations as of 2023.
Dospoy expressed skepticism about the long-term care industry’s workforce needs, stating that it is a challenging task to fulfill. He believes that it is unlikely to find enough workers for the industry due to fierce competition from other sectors.
According to a report by the Wisconsin Hospital Association in March, the state’s hospitals are anticipating an increase in demand due to the aging baby boomer population.
According to the report, by 2030, all baby boomers will have reached retirement age. In 2021, individuals aged 65 or older constituted less than 20 percent of the population, yet they were responsible for 40 percent of health care expenditures in the United States.
According to Ann Zenk, senior vice president of workforce and clinical practice for the Wisconsin Hospital Association, the surge of retirements in other industries is expected to end soon. However, in the healthcare industry, the demand for healthcare services will continue to increase for the next few decades due to the aging population.
According to Lisa Davidson, the president and CEO of LeadingAge Wisconsin, a nonprofit elder care association, nursing homes and assisted living facilities in the state are experiencing a rise in demand for services. However, the workforce capacity has not been able to match the increasing demand.
“Our members strive to meet the needs of their community,” she explained. “We aim to prevent situations where individuals have to travel long distances, or even just to neighboring counties, in order to access necessary services.”
LeadingAge is collaborating with refugee resettlement agencies in Wisconsin to assist refugees in finding employment opportunities in the long-term care sector, according to Davidson.
According to her, the collaboration has already connected several refugees with long-term care providers.
According to Davidson, the approach of bringing in refugees to work at organizations has proven to be highly successful. He highlights that some members have experienced great success in this regard, as it has provided a valuable pipeline for their organizations.
Long-term care providers will need to enhance their recruitment strategies to expose K-12 students to elder care careers prior to entering high school, according to her.
Dospoy emphasized that the state’s worker shortage is primarily fueled by demographic factors, as the baby boomer generation is gradually retiring and there is a limited influx of new workers relocating to Wisconsin.
He said that every state requires people due to low birth rates and that there is no magic solution to attract them.
