Centre for Policy on Ageing
 

 

Unmet long-term care needs of elderly people in the community: a review of the literature
Author(s)Judith Williams, Barbara Lyons, Diane Rowland
Journal titleHome Health Care Services Quarterly, vol 16, nos 1/2, 1997
Pagespp 93-120
Sourcehttp://www.tandfonline.com
KeywordsNeeds [elderly] ; Community care ; Evaluation ; Living in the community ; United States of America.
AnnotationThe extent of unmet need or the extent to which needed assistance is unavailable or insufficient, is an important issue in public policy and financing of health and support services. This article reviews the research literature to assess how unmet need is measured, and the extent of unmet needs among older people in the community. Measurement difficulties include variable definitions and measures of need across studies, the relative dearth of studies which undertake to measure unmet needs, and various methodologies used to estimate need and unmet need. In addition, some measures of status and need, such as cognitive impairment and caregiver burden are excluded from many estimates. Estimates of unmet need range from around 2% to about 35% of community-dwelling older people in the US, depending on what is included or excluded from the definition. Unmet need is associated with higher disability levels and living alone. The literature suggests that estimates of future unmet need will be mitigated by declining disability levels and increased use of assistive devices among the older population. (AKM).
Accession NumberCPA-971209207 A
ClassmarkIK: PA: 4C: K4: 7T

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