Do you have an idea that can make a difference to the Australian aged care sector?
You may be eligible for the Aged Care Partnering Program.
The Aged Care Partnering Program team will work with you to source relevant research and industry experts to facilitate partnerships that can develop your idea into a robust project.
Anyone with an innovative idea that has the potential to make an impact in Aged Care may be eligible to enter the Aged Care Partnering Program.
Project ideas will be assessed on the problem they aim to solve for aged care, how innovative they are and if they could benefit the sector more broadly.
Don’t have an idea but want to contribute? If you are a service or technology provider, researcher or professional with expertise in a discipline relevant to the aged care sector, please contact us for more information on how you could participate.
The Aged Care Partnering Program combines intensive workshops with individual online meetings facilitated by our Innovation Managers and Research Fellows.
Our team will support you through the program and introduce you to potential partners, industry experts and/or stakeholders that will collaborate with you to co-design the best project solution that is right for you, your organisation and the wider aged care sector.
The Aged Care Partnering Program will help you explore and develop your project which you may choose to develop into an application for funding.
Innovation Network
All Aged Care Partnering Program participants will continue to be supported and can connect with other like-minded innovators through our ARIIA Innovation Network.
Our suite of free modules can help you navigate working with the aged care sector.
These five short modules have been created as a valuable resource for organisations or individuals outside the aged care sector who have innovative ideas, products, or services that could bring benefits to aged care.
If you have limited knowledge about the aged care sector, don't worry! These modules are here to assist you. They will provide insights into the aged care environment, address what the key sector challenges are, guide you through innovation implementation and adoption, and offer tips on partnering with an aged care organisation.
Access to our Industry Essentials modules is available here.
ACPP Partnership Opportunities
Please refer to the noticeboard below for available partnering opportunities. For more information, click on the email reference to contact the ACPP Team. If you are interested in multiple opportunities, please advise in the body of your email.
Opportunities are listed newest first.
Email reference: Multidisciplinary Care Team Review Platform
Seeking: Residential care provider located anywhere in Australia
To partner with: Technology Provider
Problem to be solved: Many aged care facilities rely on paper-based diary systems to schedule and inform external visiting health practitioners. There is limited capacity to track attendance, prioritise relevant information and integrate communication between the multidisciplinary team into the residents’ care plans. This can lead to errors and delays in residents receiving appropriate and timely care and contribute to inefficiencies for the nursing and care staff.
Solution to be trialled: A web-based aged care management software system which allows users (e.g. GPs, visiting allied health or hospital outreach teams) to access accurate referrals linked to resident profiles and clinical information. Users can then input information from their assessments and reviews so it can be viewed by the multidisciplinary team and the facility staff. The system allows users to review and track resident progress, with improved record keeping and compliance for auditing purposes. The platform is accessible via tablet, desktop and smartphone.
Brief description of the opportunity: The developers are seeking a partner organisation to trial the platform, initially, with a limited number of their registered nurses (dependent on facility size and capacity), care managers (1-2) and visiting/on-site physiotherapists. System training would be conducted in 3x30 minute in-person or online sessions. Expected trial use time would be 3 months, during which time the developers would like to receive feedback on the platform’s functionality through an online portal and a 10-minute interview.
Benefit to the aged care provider: The ability to work with the developer to co-design the platform to meet industry needs, explore the benefits of the platform to their team's efficiency and resident outcomes. Discounted pricing after the trial period.
Email Reference: AI Finance/Compliance Dashboard with Progress Notes
Seeking: Home care provider based in NSW
To partner with: AI technology provider
Problem to be solved: Reduce administrative workload, burnout and increase job satisfaction for home care staff.
Solution to be tested: A Financial/Compliance dashboard with voice activated AI driven progress notes and incident management. The application has been co-designed with a research provider.
Role of the aged care provider: To partner with a technology provider on a pilot project to co-develop and co-design AI tools. The provider would agree to participate in the trial of the tool with 10 hours per week operational resourcing, raw data from various existing systems, access to a small number of clients and care workers to beta test and provide feedback. The provider would gain access to the technology for free for 2 years in return for free marketing of the trial results.
Timeframe: Pilot trials to be run March 2025 - June 2025.
Email Reference: Empowering Multilingual Caregiving
Seeking: Home care provider located in Metro: SA, NSW, WA or regional: QLD, VIC
To partner with: Technology provider
Problem to be solved: The home care workforce may have varying levels of English language proficiency that affects the accuracy of their record keeping that is required by providers. Inaccurate notes and communications in client records can lead to workforce inefficiency, incomplete documentation and inconsistent use of terminology.
Solution to be trialled: The home care provider will participate by trialling the language translation feature, using it within real caregiving environments. They will provide feedback on functionality, usability, and any issues encountered. This tool will allow non-English speaking caregivers to document client notes verbally in their native language. The software will automatically translate and update these notes in English, ensuring clear, accurate records without requiring the caregiver to type or translate manually.
Benefit for the aged care provider: During the trial, the home care provider will receive complimentary access to the language translation feature, enabling their team to experience its benefits first hand. They will have a direct role in shaping the final product, contributing valuable insights to tailor the tool for real-world needs. Upon successful implementation, the home care partner will be eligible for discounted pricing if they choose to adopt the full platform.
Timeframe: 3-month trial/flexible start
Email Reference: Facility digital virtual maps
Seeking: Residential care provider located anywhere in Australia
To partner with: Technology provider
Problem to be solved: Contractors and new employees experience productivity inefficiencies in orientating themselves to unfamiliar residential care facilities. This can lead to errors and reduce accuracy of quotations for maintenance or repairs for contractors and reduce the ability for first responders in the event of an emergency.
Solution to be trialled: Trial involves the provision of an immersive 360-degree scanning and virtual mapping platform to enable co-design of a specific solution for the partner. The resulting virtual map provides an accurate and up to date mapping of assets for use by facility management, address emergency preparedness and access to information for first responders, assist with training and compliance for continuous improvement and health and safety training purposes.
Brief description of the opportunity: The provider would facilitate access to relevant sections of the facility to enable the capture of 360-degree scans. The trial duration would be 2-4 weeks including the staff trial of the finished product and providing structured feedback. The provider requires a contribution to their costs associated with travel. There are several benefits to this product for the facility, including access to up-to-date information for Insurance and Risk management and the ability to use the technology for various operational needs. The provider would receive access to the finished product at the conclusion of the trial for a fee.
Email Reference: Clinical equipment information and training platform
Seeking: Residential located anywhere in Australia
To partner with: Tech provider
Problem to be solved: High staff turnover in aged care can result in a limited knowledge about the use of medical devices and clinical equipment required to provide safe care to residents. Lack of access to relevant product information, training materials and support resources can lead to misuse of equipment and increased risk to the wellbeing and safety of care recipients and staff.
Solution to be piloted: A web-based platform which is currently in use in the Australian acute care sector that provides staff with instant access to product information and training materials specific to the needs of the residential care facility.
Brief description of the role of aged care provider: The aged care partner will meet with the developer (1-2 hours) to discuss the organisation’s current equipment and medical device education process and explore potential application of the software to the site. If a use case is acceptable, the developer will work with the facility’s clinicians and procurement department to co-design specific requirements (6-8 hours). With facility assistance, relevant staff would be loaded as users to test and trial the platform over 3-6 months. The developer would provide online training sessions (2x30 minutes) to staff. During the trial, those involved in the project will provide detailed feedback, contribute to co-design, and help monitor key metrics via surveys.
Benefit for the aged care provider: Potential benefits include cost savings based on an efficient well-informed staff, improved utilisation of medical devices and equipment, increased quality of care to residents and reduced workplace injuries. The aged care partner provider will receive complimentary access to the platform for 2 years, collaborate in shaping the platform's aged care-specific features, and receive exclusive discounted pricing for continued access after the pilot.
Email Reference: Candidate Attraction and Engagement Chatbot
Seeking: Residential or home care provider located anywhere in Australia
To partner with: Tech provider
Problem to be solved: Reduce candidate drop-off during the application process, increase candidate engagement, and reduce manual processes, such as phone screening for internal Aged Care Talent Acquisition and HR teams.
Solution to be piloted: Piloting an AI-powered candidate engagement and employer-branded chatbot which can be added to existing career sites or dedicated landing pages. The chatbot is designed to engage with prospective candidates, answer FAQs, perform candidate screening, and send candidates directly to existing applicant tracking systems.
Benefit for the aged care provider: Benefits include free access to the chatbot technology and company's larger established software platform during the trial period; discounted pricing upon completion of the pilot and the ability to co-design an innovative software solution.
Timeframe: November 2024 - February 2025
Email Reference: Strategic Workforce Planning
Seeking: Residential aged care provider located anywhere in Australia
To partner with: Tech provider
Problem to be solved: Reducing staff shortages, scheduling and administrative costs, and inefficiencies through advanced operations planning, demand forecasting, workforce management, and optimised time tracking and attendance.
Solution to be tested: The software has been successfully deployed in the acute care sector nationally and internationally, the tech provider is now looking to co-design the software for use in the Australian residential aged care sector.
Benefit for the aged care provider: The residential aged care provider can co-design a world leading technology by testing, trialling, and providing feedback about the product. The partner will initially receive free access to the technology in addition to multi-year discounted pricing for an ongoing contract.
Email Reference: Vital signs monitoring
Seeking: Residential aged care provider located anywhere in Australia
To partner with: Tech provider
Problem to be solved/explored: We propose a trial of the TGA-approved vital sign monitoring patch, integrated a software solution.
Solution to be tested/trialled/piloted: This patch can monitor up to eight vital signs in real time, transmitting the data directly to our AI-powered platform. The software analyses the incoming data, provides alerts for potential health issues, and automates the recording of vital signs as well as patient progress reports. Additionally, it offers predictive capabilities, notifying nurses of potential fall incidents before they occur.
Benefit for aged care provider:
We are seeking a partnership to conduct a pilot trial within a residential care facility, involving 5-20 patients per trial phase. Initially, we will conduct a time-in-motion study to measure the time nurses spend on vital sign monitoring and patient progress reporting. Additionally, we will record and monitor all fall incidents over a 1–2-week baseline period. Following this, we will implement the proposed solution and measure the following outcomes:
1. Reduction in nursing time spent on manual tasks.
2. Decrease in the number of falls compared to the baseline period.
3. Cost savings associated with nurse task automation and fall reduction.
Timeframe: Available to start ASAP
Email Reference: Quality Standards and Compliance Online Training
Seeking: Community or Residential Aged Care Provider located anywhere in Australia
To partner with: Technology Provider
Problem to be explored: Developing a more engaging approach to compliance training
Solution to be tested: This next-generation training platform has been purpose developed in partnership with an online higher education provider and successfully deployed in one aged care provider. This opportunity offers a provider to trial and test cost savings, workforce engagement, completion times, and efficacy of a new and more engaging approach to compliance training for the Strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards.
Benefit for aged care provider: By participating in this opportunity, providers have the option of staff completing anything between two, to all 15 modules, with a fun, engaging, and early access app deployed directly to the staff member’s device. With a management dashboard to monitor completion and compliance training, your organisation can get ahead of the implementation of the Strengthened Standards.
Email Reference: Dementia Intervention Proof of Concept (Pilot)
Seeking: Community (CHSP) group provider or residential aged care provider located in Australia
To partner with: Technology provider
Problem to be solved: Aged care staff may not always be available to interact and respond to people living in residential aged care and provide evidence based, dementia aware responses to questions, deliver engaging activities or entertainment.
Solution to be trialled: The objective of the Proof of Concept is to observe the effectiveness of a robot humanoid in a residential care setting in Australia. Key staff from the partner provider will be trained to guide staff in the easy setup, execution and maintenance. They will also provide data analytics on the user experience in the gathering of evidence from clients, family members, and employees.
Benefit for the aged care provider: The supervised use of robots for social care can overcome workforce shortages and complement existing activities either based in a residential facility or onsite in a community aged care program. Through studies conducted in Singapore, the robot is currently equipped to handle multiple dialogue scenarios and provide an empathetic response. Foundation pricing and ongoing support will also be available to the participating partner.
Timeframe: Tailored to the evaluation and organisation, start date 2025.
Email Reference: AI Driven Telephone Check-in & Human Dashboard
Seeking: Home Care Provider
To partner with: Technology provider
Solution to be piloted: This service will provide regular, personalised health monitoring for clients, with AI-driven interactions customised to the client’s language and cultural background. The AI will perform telephone check-ins, capturing data that will be reviewed by the care coordinators to ensure comprehensive and consistent care.
Role of the Aged Care Provider: The aged care provider will play a crucial role in implementing and managing the AI-driven welfare check-in and real-time translation services. Their responsibilities will include selecting and onboarding eligible clients, monitoring the integration of AI services into their current care routines, and providing ongoing feedback to ensure the AI system aligns with the needs of their clients.
Benefits for the Provider: By participating in this pilot, the aged care provider will gain free access to Advanced AI Technology services during the trial, enabling them to experience the benefits of AI-driven care without financial risk. The AI services are designed to reduce the workload on human staff, enabling the provider to deliver more consistent care with fewer resources. Providers can potentially save up to $575,000 annually per 3,000 clients. The AI’s ability to communicate in 99 languages and 500 dialects ensures that all clients feel heard and respected, which can lead to higher satisfaction and retention rates.
Time Commitment for the Provider: The initial setup and integration phase is estimated at 2 hours per week during the first month. This includes staff training, system setup, and client onboarding. Post-setup, the time commitment will decrease significantly, with occasional reviews and feedback sessions as needed.
Email Reference: Relationship-centred model of care (Planning)
Seeking: Residential aged care provider located anywhere in Australia
To partner with: Researcher
Problem to be solved: To align with the new Aged Care Act, care must be delivered in ways that support the needs of the older person and places them at the centre of care planning and delivery. However, there are few evidence-based care planning tools available for aged care providers. This can lead to inconsistencies in care delivery and uncertainty about the range of services that need to be provided for the older person.
Solution to be piloted: To co-design a relationship-centred care planning tool. The tool will be based on the evidence-informed “Fundamentals of Care Framework”. The care planning tool will support the requirements of the new Aged Care Act by enabling staff to work in partnership with care recipients and ensure they are at the centre of their service plan.
Benefit for aged care provider: Access to the co-designed, evidence-based care planning tool to support delivery of safe, high-quality, relationship-centred care. The care planning tool will improve consistency in care delivery and enhance communication between staff and care recipients, as well as their partners in care.
The role of the aged care provider: Time input is to be determined by the co-design process and the needs of the provider. This could include relevant staff attendance at 2 x 2-hour workshops to inform development of the care planning tool and follow-up activities.
Timeframe: Development time for the project, including co-design process and an implementation plan, is approximately a 12-month commitment that could be supported by the project team.
Email Reference: Relationship-centred model of care (Implementing and Evaluating)
Seeking: Multiple residential aged care provider located anywhere in Australia
To partner with: Researcher
Problem to be solved: Aged care staff, both frontline and leadership teams, report challenges in delivering high-quality relationship-centred care to recipients due to competing priorities. This can lead to inconsistent care, along with, staff dissatisfaction and burnout. Staff retention and workforce turnover issues are impacting providers ability to fulfil expectations under the Aged Care Quality standards.
Solution to be piloted: Upskill your workforce in providing high-quality Relationship-Centred Care through implementing and evaluating a university-developed digital training platform. The platform, consisting of two learning modules based on the "Fundamentals of Care Framework", is designed for health and aged care workers to enhance their skills in the delivery of relationship-centred care that meets care recipients essential physical and psychosocial needs. The modules also focus on the self-care needs of the workforce.
Benefit for the aged care provider: These modules empower staff to meet the care needs of residents and provide a framework for selfcare. Aged care providers will have free access to the two digital learning modules developed by university researchers.
The role of the aged care provider: The provider would facilitate access to the digital learning modules for their care workers via their own in-house learning management system. The training modules should take approximately 40-45 minutes per staff member (approx. 20 minutes per module if completed separately). The expectation is that, upon completion, staff would complete evaluation surveys and provide feedback on the training which would take an additional 20 minutes.
Timeframe: Up to 12 months depending on the providers existing training calendars.
Opportunity for: Community or Residential Aged Care Provider and Researcher
Partnering with: Technology Provider
Opportunity for a community or residential aged care provider and researcher to partner with a Singaporean company specialising in robotic humanoids for Dementia to co-create and localise content/programming that will be of great benefit to older Australians. The implementation timeline will be tailored accordingly to do a proper evaluation with the partner organisation. Possible start date is from late 2024.
The social Robotics & Artificial Intelligence (AI) Humanoid can provide consistent engagement and therapy through its 4 main competencies: exercise, sing-along, cognitive group games and conversation. The robot is currently commercially available in Singapore and deployed in multiple residential facilities and hospitals. As a part of the trial, the robot would be deployed in a residential care organisation in Australia, with the opportunity to co-develop programming and optics (voice, look, mannerism etc.) to localise it for efficiency and eventual distribution for older persons living in residential care and/or receiving community aged care.
The project would focus on a pre-implementation study of a control group of residents for 4 weeks without the use of the robot and another sample group utilising the robot daily in accordance with the organisation’s daily routine. The study aims to show the robot’s effectiveness in dementia care intervention and improving overall cognitive and emotional wellbeing. The technology provider is keen to work collaboratively with the researcher/aged care organisation to co-develop relevant programming or relevant customisations for appearance, voice and language.
Email Reference Dementia Intervention Proof of Concept (Research)
No current partnering opportunities.
ARIIA x MDPP Ideas Incubator Program
Applications for the final rounds of the ARIIA x MDPP Ideas Incubator Program have closed. Thank you to all applicants. Please keep an eye on our ARIIA Projects page to find out more about the innovations we have supported through this program.
Further information
If you would like to make an enquiry about participating in the Aged Care Partnering Program, please contact us via our online enquiry form or contact us direct at acpp@ariia.org.au.