Community-Based Healthcare of the Elderly

Abstract

The elderly mainly access hospitals for their health care needs. However, hospitalization often results in many unwanted adverse effects such as infections, pressures sores, falls, and decline in functionality. Therefore many countries have begun to move to community-based health care services, which include day care centers, home visiting, integrated community-based services, Hospital at Home, and mobile medical units. Day care services deliver care to elderly who require follow-up after discharge from hospital, treatment of chronic diseases, social and recreational services, and respite care. Home visits of a preventive nature by a multidisciplinary team have shown beneficial effects. Curative home visits are needed for the bed-bound elderly for their daily needs. Community-based Integrated Care is an organized home visiting program coordinated by a case manager. It has shown benefits of mortality reduction and avoidance of institutionalization. Hospital at Home refers to acute care of selected diseases and stable patient factors in the patients’ own home. It reduces costs and avoids the ill effects of hospitalization. Mobile health units are offered by nonprofit organizations for elders living in remote areas. India lacks community-based services. The national programs for the elderly in India are ideally placed to design unique services nearer the home, integrating family and the community. Community-based models of health care have shown many benefits on a global scale. India needs to modify the experiences of other countries to suit its own context.

Alka Ganesh (retired)