A "staggering" increase in the number of older people in the south-east has prompted a major new strategy on health services for the elderly in the region.
Towards the Golden Years is an 86-page document which sets out the policy on services for the elderly to be implemented from now until 2011 by the South Eastern Health Board.
Introducing the document at the weekend, the board's chief executive, Mr John Cooney, said new approaches were needed to deal with the rapid growth in the number of older people.
The south-east had seen a 30 per cent rise in the number of people over 80 and a 44 per cent increase in the 85-plus group between 1991 and 1996. "This is a staggering increase in a relatively short period of time," Mr Cooney said.
Improving standards of living, health awareness and the continuing developments in medical technology and drugs would ensure this trend would continue, he added.
"From population projections by the Central Statistics Office we can estimate that by the year 2026 the population over 65 years will increase by nearly 50 per cent, but the greatest growth will be in the very elderly, those aged 85 years and over, whose numbers will more than double."
The report, drawn up by a review group chaired by Dr Paddy McKiernan, a consultant physician at Wexford General Hospital, says considerable investment will be needed if community services are to be strengthened, an area identified as needing priority attention.
It says home-care attendant and home-help services, day-care, respite care and paramedical services are areas which particularly need to be addressed. Elderly people at risk are to be identified and have a care plan and "key worker" to ensure their care is co-ordinated.
The emphasis on improving such services is not surprising given the results of a survey, included in the report, which shows that older people in the south-east receive less outside help than their counterparts in eight other European regions.
The south-east was one of nine regions included in a study of health and social care for the elderly; the others being West Glamorgan, Dudley and North Staffordshire in Britain; Barcelona and Andalusia in Spain; Jamtlands in Sweden; Porvoo in Finland; and Istria in Croatia.
The results show that the health status of older people in the south-east compares favourably with that of many of the other regions. However, 23 per cent of people over 65 said help which they needed with daily living was never there when they needed it.
The region was last of the nine when it came to the number of older people who got outside help with financial affairs and eighth for the extent of outside help with washing and dressing. It was seventh in two further categories: the number who had meals brought to their home and who received outside help with cooking and cleaning.
The authors of Towards the Golden Years warn that some care must be taken in interpreting such figures, not only because of differences in health-service organisation but also in view of community and family support. "However, in terms of usage of formal community supports, the residents of the South Eastern Health Board [region] score in the lower regions in all aspects."
Other priorities identified by the strategy include the need to help older people to remain independent, both by maintaining their health at home and ensuring as many as possible return to their own environments after hospital treatment. However, the report also recognises the need for high-quality residential and hospital care.
