Welfare reform on the Web (July 2007): Care of the elderly - overseas

Costs of long-term care for older people

A. Bowes (editor)

Social Policy and Practice, vol. 6, 2007, p.349-466

A minority of people will require long-term care and support in older age, and many of these only for the last few months of life. Nevertheless, in most developed countries debate continues about how to fund this. This collection of articles aims to explore recent debates and to consider new evidence relating to the costs of such care and support, the extent of future need, and how it can be funded. The articles cover issues such as quality and equity of services, informal care by family members, long-term care insurance, and public provision of free personal care. It is hoped that policy-makers can learn from comparative study of various countries’ approaches to these questions.

Managing the financial assets of older people: balancing independence and protection

C. Tilse and others

British Journal of Social Work, vol. 37, 2007, p. 565-572

This paper reports on an exploratory study of older Australians who are being assisted with the management of their financial assets by family members. The research explored the level of assistance received and older people’s assessment of that assistance, identified the barriers to developing asset management practices that met older people’s expressed needs, and considered the role of social workers in this area of practice.