AS a registered nurse in an aged-care facility, I have noticed a significant increase in the complexity of the task in caring for residents over the past decade.

Many residents enter the facility with only days or weeks to live as they remain in their homes until needing palliative care. Other residents, and their families, expect to receive treatment in hospitals immediately if they become acutely ill.

These factors place an enormous responsibility on aged-care staff in acting promptly in these matters.

Many "boomer generation'' nurses are working in aged care and are now reaching retirement age. It is important to redress the wages disparity between acute-care and aged-care nurses who receive 20 per cent less.

Source: The Advertiser [Jean Walker, Westbourne Park]