Chunghwa Senior Care Co., Ltd.
toggle iconHome care paves the road for aging at home.
What most seniors expect is “aging at home.”According to the statistics by Ministry of Health and Welfare (see the following chart), nearly ninety percent of the seniors in Taiwan choose to live with their children, spouses or in solitude because living at home gives them a sense of comfort and security.
The living options of 65 years old and above in Taiwan.
- Living with children
- Living with spouse
- Living alone
- Living with relatives or friends
- Living in senior living facilities
- Other
- Refusing to answer
Problems of the aging society
The first problem is the increasing need for chronic diseases care.
According to statistics, around 80% of the seniors suffer from one chronic disease while around 50% of them suffer from two or more chronic diseases in the U.S. The top three severe chronic diseases are mobility difficulty, Alzheimer’s or other dementias, and stroke.
- 40%
Impaired Mobility
More than 40 percent of those between 50 and 64 report problems with mobility; 2 percent are so impaired they need regular help with their personal care.
- 250,000
Alzheimer’s Disease and Other Dementias
More than 250,000 of 65 year olds and above suffered dementias in Taiwan. By 2050, the total in the 65-and-older population will rise to more than 13 million.
- 65 Years and Over
Stroke
Almost 800,000 strokes occur in the U.S. each year. Three-fourths of the victims are 65 or older. Nearly 30,000 people in Taiwan are first-time strokes. The average age of male who suffered Stroke is 64.5 and female is 68.5.
Professional home care is the key to health improvement and continual non-medical care.
Lacking the understanding of “home care” and “professional home caregivers”, most people have no choice but to apply for foreign workers to solve the caretaking problems of their seniors. However, this cannot offer them fine-quality care.
When patients go to hospitals, doctors and nurses can tell them as much information about eating and nursing as possible. Once they leave the hospital, it is the home care that matters and greatly influences their recovery. The real challenges regarding following the doctor’s orders thus begin. Based on surveys, “professional home care” helps to naturally establish correct and healthful nursing concepts in life, especially for the seniors or those who need more intense care. Moreover, compared to the seniors who do not receive home care, those who do receive home care, lower their outpatient visits by 25%, which further lowers their nursing fee and enhances their quality of life.
The seniors who receive good home care will decrease their outpatient visits. The most obvious case is the senior patients with dementia. The seniors who do not receive home care have almost twice more outpatient visits than those who do.
Examining and reflecting the real needs of the seniors, we will find that what we need to do is to delay the process from health to disease and to death during their aging process. Moreover, we also need to help the seniors maintain their self-esteem when they are suffering from severe diseases or taking a long bed rest. Because their needs vary in different phases, it is important to have professional home care.
More than a slogan, “Active Aging” should be the driving force to realize happy senior years.
Numerous studies on the seniors’ needs in Taiwan indicate that the need for “medical care” always comes first. With long-term accumulation of health risk factors, the health condition of the seniors is the most complicated among all age groups, and their needs for health care service and social care come in the greatest variety. Thus, in developed countries, not only are medical service and long-term care provided, but preventive health care and health improvement are also included.
Through the supporting system of “home care service” and the integration of peripheral care and service resources, the multiple-care service mode is created with the front-end “prevention” concept and the back-end “care” needs to be included
