Doctors and nurses united on Monday to call for an urgent response to the aged care "crisis" before us, saying waiting for the royal commission to hand down its report in November is too late.

And when statistics such as the fact 16,000 Australians died last year while waiting for an aged care package stare you in the face, it's hard to argue the whole approach to aged care in this country isn't flawed.

Aged care workers do a tremendous job but they are overworked and underpaid, meaning they are afforded no time to take extra special care of our grandparents, parents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles and friends.

A major flaw is that many nursing homes are operated to make a profit by corporations or charity groups, and therefore stretch staff resources as far as they can.

Caring for the elderly shouldn't be a money-making exercise, these people deserve the time, care, respect and friendship of those tasked to look after them.

The ethics and principles of geriatric health and wellbeing care must change dramatically and recent ABC social experiment program Old People's Home For 4 Year Olds could provide some insight into what the future could be.

Before the documentary series, one northern Sydney nursing home resident featured in the seven-week experiment said that nursing homes were a place people went to die.

By the end of it, his and other residents experienced measurable improvements in both their physical and mental state due to the physical activities and social interaction he experienced with the kindergarten pupils in the specially designed preschool built within the retirement home.

The program showed that there is so much more to supporting vulnerable Australians and that their care should be intergenerational, dignified and meaningful.

To do that, funding and care models must be transformed along with the mindset of those who legislate the guidelines.