The benefit and burden of "ageing-in-place" in an aged care community

Abstract

Ageing-in-place is usually viewed as a positive approach to meeting the needs of the older person, supporting them to live independently, or with some assistance, for as long as possible. It implies that older people prefer to live in their own home, rather than in an institution or care centre. However, there is little in the literature about the implications of ageing-in-place for the individual or their carers, or the burden this can place on service providers and aged care communities.

Residential respite care is associated with family carers experiencing financial strain

“…The range of aged care services offered varies, but generally includes: domestic and personal assistance, transport, home modifications, nursing care, counselling and various forms of respite care, including adult day programs and in-home and residential (institutional) respite. While the introduction and delivery of aged care services often rely upon the support of a family carer to coordinate and facilitate the services [9], carers may expect that they will be supported in the caregiving role [4]. While carers' preferences may be considered in assessment and referrals for aged care services, there is evidence that the care services are provided to rather than negotiated with carers [10,11].…”

“…Providing care to a frail older person can have negative impacts [2], and result in poor health, decreased well-being [3,4] and low quality of life [5]. These detrimental aspects of providing care are a global concern because they affect the capacity of carers to maintain their role and level of support and often result in the institutionalisation of the frail older person [6].…”

Daily Life Experience of Institutionalized Elderly People

“…A group of researcher emphasized that activity programs improve elderly well being, empower residents in their new environment and foster the adjustment process [15,21,[23][24][25][26][27][28]. Specifically, activities that promoted social involvement was reported to be significant in leading healthy life and enhance feeling good about oneself, even if elderly people are experiencing illness and disability [4]. In residential facility, elderly people may spent less time in social events and community interactions, which were major part of their life.…”

“…They find themselves living in one because of a crises in their health, or because somebody else persuade them [2][3][4][5]. Elderly people feared the residential care institutions and view them as a dumping place [6,7].…”

Public policy response, aging in place, and big data platforms: Creating an effective collaborative system to cope with aging of the population

“…Many long-term care programs for aging in place have been implemented in high-income countries such as Australia, Canada, and the United States (27)(28)(29). Over the past decade, Japan's government-initiated, mandatory, public, long-term care insurance (LTCI) system has ushered in increased use of aging in place at a reduced cost to households (30).…”