Australia is hurtling towards a healthcare crisis, with more than 2 million people set to become unpaid carers within the next five years.

New data from the Violet Initiative’s 2025 Care Index highlights the growing burden on the so-called “sandwich generation” – the name given to those who simultaneously have to care for their children and ageing parents.

Some 2.2 million Australians are expected to become unpaid carers by 2030, which experts say could fuel a workplace crisis.

The research indicates that 73 per cent of impacted families work full-time while managing their caregiving responsibilities. 

A significant 53 per cent are forced to choose between their careers and providing care, while 67 per cent have experienced workplace discrimination.

The Dominello family is just one of many at the face of the crisis.

Josie Dominello, who lives in an aged care facility after a dementia diagnosis, receives regular visits from her children, including former NSW senior minister Victor Dominello.

“It became really, really hard, so we had to make the really tough call and put Mum in a home,” he said, adding that the hardest thing is “to say goodbye to Mum every night feeling like she’s alone”.

He said Australia requires a fundamental shift in how we prepare for life’s final season, with the number of people aged 85 and over expected to increase fivefold in the next five years. 

“There are going to be more and more people like my Mum that require heightened need and heightened care,” Dominello said.

“As a nation, we need to start planning for that.”

Organisations like Violet, an online platform designed to facilitate planning and management, are attempting to address those challenges.

“I’d like to see every 75-year-old in the country having these conversations with their family,” chief executive Melissa Reader said.

“When those conversations and plans don’t take place, people are making crisis decisions in hospital corridors.”