The Problem: Lack of Medical Care for the Ageing Population in Australia
The new product would be an innovative medical assistance application accessible on mobile smart phones which would enable people meet their medical needs. According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the number of people with disabilities is around 4.3 million in 2015. Among the 4.3 million people, 78.5 percent suffer from long term physical disabilities while 21.5 percent people suffer from mental and behavioural issues. The average age group of the disabled people range from 15 to 64 years (abs.gov.au, 2018). The information is further substantiated by the fact that with increasing life expectancy among Australians, the tenure of suffering from chronic and serious illness has also increased (abc.net.au, 2018). The present level of assistance which these aged people get in the Australian society is not sufficient and often face indignity due to their disabilities. As per the Australian Human Rights Commission the Government of Australia has to play a significant role and support innovations in helping out the ageing people residing in Australia (humanrights.gov.au, 2018). This high number of suffering aged Australian population call for a medical help service they would be accede to on their mobile smart phones. The innovative medical app called Mediapp would enable the aged people to seek medical assistance from the nearest government health facilities. They can also seek advice regarding medicines, the availability of the medicines and other health related advices. The users would also be able to call doctors and ambulances in case of emergency using the app. The stakeholders of the service would be government, the medical facilities, the ageing people, their family members and the society in general.
The problem that the application would deal with is the lack of medical care and support which the ageing population of Australia suffer from. The cause of these issues faced by the ageing people of Australia can attributed to several factors. The first factors is gross lack of ethics and responsibility among the younger population of Australia. The second factor is that these ageing people suffer from disability and mobility issues, thus find it difficult to commute to hospitals and other medical services (theconversation.com, 2018). The problem is ongoing and escalating at a very fast rate which requires prompt government and social intervention.
The escalating problem of suffering of the ageing Australians have been mentioned in several publications which proves the seriousness of the issue. The Australian Institute of Family Studies points out the ageing creates social, physical and economic challenges (abc.net.au, 2018). The issue also creates a challenge for the government to put up a social support system for these people. The body mentions that 1901 only 4 percent population in Australia was beyond 65 years. The number reached 14 percent in 2011 and is estimated to reach 25 percent by 2101 (aifs.gov.au, 2018). This clearly proves the growing needs of the ageing population of Australia.
The Benefits of Using Mediapp
The problem of the challenges the ageing population face in Australia is escalating at a fast rate and needs to be dealt with. The documents published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics show that over 35 percent job seekers aged over 55 years stop seeking jobs due to workplace injustice like disparity in salary which they face. The employers regard their physical disabilities as grounds on the basis of which they face these injustices (smh.com.au, 2018). The business organisations by doing this fail to take advantage of the professional experiences of the aged employees which affects their long term growth (Pool et al., 2015). The government too needs to form stricter legislations to improve the conditions of the ageing population (humanrights.gov.au, 2018). Failure to implement steps to deal with the issue would lead to severe reduction productivity and services in the business organizations and the economy as a whole.
There are several health related applications available on smart phones but very few medical related applications. This would provide opportunities to introduce an innovative application which would integrate both health app and medi-app (theaustralian.com.au, 2018).
The innovative application would help in increasing the asset in the Australian society to deal with the problems of the ageing people. The innovation would benefit the ageing population of Australia by enabling them to obtain health assistance and medical advice with the help of a single smart phone application. The improvement in the level of self-dependency among the aged people and improve in their health conditions would provide evidence to the benefit of the app. The improvement in the lifestyle of the ageing population would also be measurable in terms of economic benefits (Jin et al., 2015). For example, the ageing people using Mediapp would be able to get access to timely advices and medical services. This would save them from incurring expenditures like travelling to hospitals just to seek medical advices and undergoing unnecessary pathological tests. The amount of money they would save would show the benefit these ageing people have derived from using Mediapp.
Benefits to be delivered
The application of Mediapp to help the ageing population in Australia seek medical assistance and advices which would allow them to derive them certain key benefits:
Improved standard of life:
The ageing population of Australia would be able to avail medical assistance which would improve their health and standards of life. They would experience improvements like better control over health issues like diabetes and obesity which would boost their self-confidence. This would enhance their social participation once again improving their life standards (Blackman et al., 2016).
The Benefits for the Government of Australia
Professional development:
The application of Mediapp would improve the standard of life of the ageing people which would enable them to seek more job opportunities and professional development. This would in turn enable them to earn more salary which would promote their standard of lives (Gordon, 2017).
Improved productivity in business organizations:
The business organizations would benefit from the benefit Mediapp would bring to the ageing population of Australia. The improvement in the health standards of the ageing people would enable them to obtain jobs in business organizations. The business organizations would in turn benefit from their experiences which would promote their increase in productivity. Thus, business organizations would benefit from Mediapp as well (Bloom et al., 2015).
The following are the benefits which the application, Mediapp would bear for the Government of Australia:
The application Mediapp would enable the Government of Australia improve the standard of lives of the ageing Australians which is one of its priorities (austrade.gov.au, 2018). Australia is technologically very advanced and provides the facilities for innovation in various fields like geriatrics. Thus, in this light one can infer that innovative mobile applications like Mediapp would promote welfare of the ageing people.
The health benefits which Mediapp would usher among the ageing people of Australia would enable them to attain better health conditions. As a result, they would be able to attain and pursue their career. The business organizations would be able to employ their ageing employees for longer tenure and in turn benefit by their experiences. This would lead to high productivity and profits in the organizations. The Government of Australia would as a result be able to obtain more taxes from them which increase its revenue generation (Bloom et al., 2015).
The benefits delivered by the application Mediapp can judged by measurements of several key performance indicators. The for example, a survey can be conducted among the users of Mediapp to gain information about the medical expenditures they used to incur before and after using the app. The reduction in unnecessary medical expenditure can be regarded as the benefit the users derive from the app. This reduction of expenditure and improvement of health of the users would be regarded as the baseline for the measuring the benefit of the app.
The interim benefit the application Mediapp would usher can be measured by comparing number of ageing employees working in the operations and the rate of professional development they have achieved. For example, in an organization, three ageing employees were offered promotion and five were declined due to health reasons. After using Mediapp, three employees of those five were awarded promotion. This increase in the ageing employees in senior positions can prove benefit of Mediapp on interim basis.
Measuring the Benefits of Using Mediapp
The increase in taxes the Government of Australia would earn and the improvement in the standard of living in the country would serve as long term benefit of using Mediapp. The government can use the reduction in number of deaths to measure the benefits of using the application as an alternative.
The attributes of Mediapp would depend on several factors like the amount of financial resources available. The level of expertise of personnel available to work on the application would also have serious implications on it.
The innovation on the application Mediapp would require formation of strategies and intervention from the management. The management should from time to time judge the outcomes of the plans towards introduction of Mediapp and bring about any amendment that may be deemed necessary.
The apex management would maintain strict vigilance towards development of the innovative mobile application Mediapp. It should exercise intervention in every aspect of the development of the app in order to ensure sufficient value for the amount invested towards the process.
Strategic interventions
Describe and provide evidence or reasoning as to why these interventions might have an impact.
The table may be used to outline strategic interventions. Note it is not mandatory.]
The following are the two recommended strategic options:
The apex management of the firm should approach for government assistance.
The apex management can alternatively seek incubation assistance from companies from same sector.
[Accuracy of data used to compare project options should be sufficient to robustly compare options. Analysis of project options requires a level of accuracy consistent with ‘concept estimates’ (at a minimum) of capital costs, cash flows and ongoing output or operating costs. A concept estimate is an approximation of the probable cost of a program or project based on available verifiable information. The level of accuracy used to present estimates should reflect the scale and complexity of the investment. The level of analysis should provide sufficient information for an effective comparison of the project options and to demonstrate that an adequate range of options have been considered. The methodology used should be consistent across all options. Indicative costs should be supported by evidence and defensible.
The tables in this section are a guide only and should be used, modified or not used as appropriate. Projects which are HVHR should provide more detailed information to support assessment of robustness.
In characterising the project options and considering their impacts, agencies should address sustainability investment opportunities of project options. For example where significant operational savings can be derived through specific approaches. The focus should be to identify up-front sustainability investments in areas of need and which are likely to deliver a good investment return.
Factors Affecting the Attributes of Mediapp
The key stakeholder of the project would be the Government of Australia and the financers. The main stakeholders benefit would be the aged population of Australia who require a medical app to meet their medical requirements.
- Better standard of life for ageing people.
- Enhancement of social acceptances.
- The ageing people would get required advices through the app before buying medicines. Hence, there will be less wastage of medicines and reduced impact their chemicals would have on the environment.
- Timely health advices would result in reduction of diseases and spreading them. This would benefit the environment as a whole.
More savings of medical expenditures.
More productivity at the business organizations as they are able to take advantage of the experience of the ageing employees
The overall evaluation of the socio-economic and environmental impacts would be positive.
[The full business case is the first time departments are asked to address the information required in Part 5 and speaks to the question: ‘Can the solution really be delivered?’, this section is a key part of the full business case and should put forward a rigorous case clearly justifying why the recommended solution is the most effective and actionable solution.
This section should include confirmation of the above analysis in the light of detailed costing and scoping of the recommended solution as well as additional detailed information relating specifically to the deliverability of the recommended solution, as specified below.
To avoid duplication, refer to earlier sections where appropriate.
This section should also justify why the recommended solution is preferred in relation to each component of the analysis.]
[Clearly state which project option (which may comprise one or a number of projects) is the Recommended Solution, addressing the rationale for its selection in light of the integrated assessment, stating its details (including objectives and a project scope statement).
If a major asset is required, provide a brief summary of the design and specifications to the extent they have been developed. Note: detailed designs are not expected at this stage, however departments must provide enough information on scope to support a rigorous costing.
Provide details on output requirements associated with changes proposed to service delivery including VPS and non VPS staffing implications.
Where appropriate include a summary of key elements of the design feasibility study which demonstrates the long term vision for the preferred option in the broader urban/environmental context. Provide a ‘Design Intent Statement’ to demonstrate the intended level of design quality and identify what design aspects of the project need special consideration.
Provide information on preferred sequencing or staging of the project solution and justify why staging/ sequencing is required or desired.
Describe significant broader impacts specific to the implementation of the Recommended Solution. Indicate locational details and service area impacts.
Outline how the solution is consistent with, or addresses, public interest issues such as equity, access etc.]
References:
4430.0 – Disability, Ageing and Carers, Australia: Summary of Findings, 2015. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/[email protected]/0/C258C88A7AA5A87ECA2568A9001393E8?Opendocument
Adhikari, S. (2018). Phones a friend for G Medical. Retrieved from https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/technology/smartphones-a-friend-for-g-medical/news-story/5cd6840366cc146d919f7f139546661d
An age-old problem: society fails to truly embrace its seniors. (2018). Retrieved from https://theconversation.com/an-age-old-problem-society-fails-to-truly-embrace-its-seniors-16299
Australians living longer but facing serious health challenges: report. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-06-11/australians-living-longer-but-facing-serious-health-challenges/5516560
Blackman, S., Matlo, C., Bobrovitskiy, C., Waldoch, A., Fang, M. L., Jackson, P., … & Sixsmith, A. (2016). Ambient assisted living technologies for aging well: a scoping review. Journal of Intelligent Systems, 25(1), 55-69.
Bloom, D. E., Chatterji, S., Kowal, P., Lloyd-Sherlock, P., McKee, M., Rechel, B., … & Smith, J. P. (2015). Macroeconomic implications of population ageing and selected policy responses. The Lancet, 385(9968), 649-657.
Current and emerging issues for older people | Australian Human Rights Commission. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.humanrights.gov.au/news/speeches/current-and-emerging-issues-older-people.
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Gordon, R. J. (2017). The rise and fall of American growth: The US standard of living since the civil war. Princeton University Press.
Hockey, J. (2018). Ageism in the workplace hurts us all. Retrieved from https://www.smh.com.au/opinion/ageism-in-the-workplace-hurts-us-all-20150303-13ta5q.html
Illegal dumping. (2018). Retrieved from https://www.sustainability.vic.gov.au/Government/Litter-and-illegal-dumping/Illegal-dumping
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Jin, K., Simpkins, J. W., Ji, X., Leis, M., & Stambler, I. (2015). The critical need to promote research of aging and aging-related diseases to improve health and longevity of the elderly population. Aging and disease, 6(1), 1.
Killaspy, H., Marston, L., Green, N., Harrison, I., Lean, M., Cook, S., … & Koeser, L. (2015). Clinical effectiveness of a staff training intervention in mental health inpatient rehabilitation units designed to increase patients’ engagement in activities (the Rehabilitation Effectiveness for Activities for Life [REAL] study): single-blind, cluster-randomised controlled trial. The Lancet Psychiatry, 2(1), 38-48.
Pool, I. A., Poell, R. F., Berings, M. G., & ten Cate, O. (2015). Strategies for continuing professional development among younger, middle-aged, and older nurses: A biographical approach. International journal of nursing studies, 52(5), 939-950.
Zohar, D., & Polachek, T. (2014). Discourse-based intervention for modifying supervisory communication as leverage for safety climate and performance improvement: A randomized field study. Journal of applied psychology, 99(1), 113.