National Palliative Care Workforce Resilient but Under Pressure, Survey Finds
17 Oct 2025
The survey, conducted by Winton Research & Insights from May to August 2024, gathered responses from 1,400 health and aged care professionals, workers, and volunteers.
PCA CEO Camilla Rowland said the survey highlights the strain on the palliative care workforce amid rising demand and limited funding.
“Increasing demand for care, funding constraints, and workforce shortages are putting pressure on services, professionals, and volunteers, limiting access to palliative and end-of-life care,” Ms Rowland said.
Key survey findings:
Specialist palliative care:
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90% reported increased demand, but only 28% said funding met that demand.
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69% experienced difficulty recruiting staff; 48% reported challenges retaining staff.
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Only 33% believed their service had enough staff to provide high-quality care to all patients.
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Just 16% felt funding was sufficient for out-of-hours care.
Primary care:
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72% reported increased demand for palliative care.
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Only 18% said their role boundaries with specialist services were clear.
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96% agreed early discussion of palliative care is critical, but only 11% felt adequately funded to provide it.
Aged care:
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83% said their service provided palliative care to all who needed it.
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Only 39% felt their service was adequately funded.
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49% reported no change or decreased quality of palliative care in the past year despite the Aged Care Royal Commission’s recommendation that palliative care be “core business.”
Voluntary Assisted Dying (VAD):
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49% of respondents reported VAD had increased demand for palliative care, while only 2% reported a decrease.
The survey underscores the resilience of the palliative care workforce but signals urgent need for increased funding, staffing, and support to meet growing demand.
Source: Palliative Care Australia, 17 October 2025.
