Institution care for the elderly in Curacao

ABSTRACT

This study investigated the need for care among the elderly living in a institution (nursing home or a home for the elderly) in Curacao. Answers were sought for the following questions (1) what type of care do the elderly living in an institution need (2) is there a difference in needs for care between those living in a nursing home and those living in a home of the elderly? (3) is there an overlap between populations of the two? Interviews were conducted with the head nurses of both types of institutions on the need for care. The instruments used were an 8-item scale on Activities of Daily Living (ADL), a 5-item scale on Household Activities (HHA) and a 4-item scale on Memory and Orientation Disorders (MOD). Additional questions were asked about demographic characteristics, being beridden or incontinent and other physical problems. There were severe limitation for HHA (85 percent), and ADL (57 percent); 43 percent had severe MOD, 55 percent had severe problems with incontinence and 23 percent had one or more additional physical problems. With the exception of MOD, the nursing home population had more severe problems. However, almost half of the elderly in homes had a similarly extensive need for care. Despite differences in the manner in which each institute was financed and the amount of money they received as well as differences in admission criteria and educational level of the personnel, there was a great overlap between the nursing home population and those living in homes for the elderly. It is therefore necessary to (better) integrate these two forms of intramural elderly care.(AU)