tailieunhanh - Enhancing Elderly Care Services in Asia and the Pacific

significant ramifications for the overall health of seniors. Firstly, seniors tend to turn to their doctors as their primary source of medical information. Secondly, they have, in general, resisted turning to the Internet for their primary medical information seeking needs. These two characteristics are significant due to changing trends in medicine. With HMO’s and hospitals demanding that doctors see a certain number of patients each day, the average amount of time a doctor spends with her patient is fifteen minutes (Belzer 1999, .). Fifteen minutes may not provide enough time for seniors to garner the information necessary to make critical. | Enhancing Elderly Care Services in Asia and the Pacific Outcome Document of the Regional Forum on Elderly Care Services in Asia and the Pacific 21-22 January 2011 Nanjing China The Regional Forum on Elderly Care Services in Asia and the Pacific was convened on 21 and 22 January 2011 in Nanjing China to identify good practices policy gaps and priority areas for action in ensuring quality health and long-term care services for older persons in Asia and the Pacific. I. Key gaps and challenges The Forum identified the following gaps and challenges facing elderly care services in Asia and the Pacific A. National policy and action Most Governments have adopted policies related to older persons such as the provision of preferential tax rates or land provisions to support the development of elderly care services however the challenge remains translating such policies into action. As Government focal points on ageing change frequently they are not sensitized sufficiently to key issues and in particular with regard to the recommendations arising from the United Nations conferences. Coordination of measures taken to enhance services for older persons remains a challenge in many countries. While an old-age allowance is often available there is rarely a comprehensive social protection system that provides old-age insurance and health protection for older persons. B. Health and social care systems There is a lack of an overall strategy in ensuring a continuum of care for older persons covering the whole range of services from home and community-based care to institutional care. The needs of older persons are not addressed adequately in the health systems in most countries in the region particularly with regard to longterm care. There is a lack of older persons-friendly health services. Discrimination against elderly patients in health care facilities remains a challenge. 1 Geriatric care is not well developed in most developing countries. Geriatrics and gerontology are often not