Integrated Continuum of Long-term care
Providing access to long-term care for older people
Older people continue to have aspirations to well-being and respect regardless of declines in physical and mental capacity. Long-term-care systems enable older people, who experience significant declines in capacity, to receive the care and support that allow them to live a life consistent with their basic rights, fundamental freedoms and human dignity.
These services can also help reduce the inappropriate use of acute health-care services, help families avoid catastrophic care expenditures and free women – usually the main caregivers – to have broader social roles. While global data on the need and unmet need for long-term care do not exist, national-level data reveal large gaps in the provision of and access to such services in many low- and middle-income countries.
What is long-term care?
Long-term care services include traditional health service such as management of chronic geriatric conditions, rehabilitation, palliation, promotion and preventative services.
However, long-term care services should also include assistive care services such as caregiving and social support for older people. All these services must be integrated and provided in a continuum with the underlying core principles of person-centred care.
What is WHO doing for long-term care?
WHO Integrated Continuum of Long-term care will uphold these principles of integration, non-fragmentation and person-centredness to support countries develop quality long-term care programmes.
WHO has identified three approaches that will be crucial. These are:
- establishing the foundations necessary for provision of long-term care as part of universal health coverage;
- building and maintaining a sustainable and appropriately trained workforce and supporting unpaid caregivers; and
- ensuring the quality of long-term care.
To support these approaches WHO will:
- provide technical support for national situation analyses of long-term care and for development, implementation and monitoring of relevant legislation, policies, plans, financing and services; and
- design tools and guidance for a minimum package of long-term care as part of universal health coverage, including:
- provide online resources for informal caregivers;
- improve the working conditions of care workers; and
- assess the health impact of social protection programmes
WHO long-term care series
The WHO long-term care series aims to catalyse change and encourage the development of sustainable and equitable long-term care systems worldwide. The series will do this by sharing regional experiences of long-term care, including gaps, challenges, models of care and support worth considering; and providing guidance on key issues, such as financing, human resourcing, monitoring and research.
Regional discussions on long-term care
WHO is holding regional policy dialogues to build understanding on what is needed and commitment to take action that will meet the needs of frail and care-dependent older people.
Global Network on Long-term Care
The WHO Global Network on Long-term care (GNLTC) is a multidisciplinary, multi-institutional network of experts that provides strategic and technical advice to WHO in developing norms and guidelines necessary for the implementation of the WHO Global Strategy and Action Plan on Ageing and Health in the area of long-term care. GNLTC will advise WHO on ways to create equitable and sustainable long-term care models for older people, with a focus on optimizing functional ability and achieving Healthy Ageing.
The World Health Data on long-term care
Older people continue to have aspirations to well-being and respect regardless of declines in physical and mental capacity.
Relevant publications
Decade of healthy ageing: baseline report - summary
The Baseline Report for the Decade of Healthy Ageing 2021−2030 addresses five issues:Introduces Healthy Ageing, the Decade’s actions...
Decade of healthy ageing: baseline report
The Global Strategy on Ageing and Health and its first action plan 2016−2020, mandate WHO to produce a baseline report in 2020 for the Decade...
Preventing and managing COVID-19 across long-term care services: Policy brief, 24 July 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has affected older people disproportionately, especially those living in long-term care facilities. In many countries, evidence shows...
Health information, advice, and reminders delivered through mobile phones can encourage healthy behaviors and help older people to improve and maintain...
Towards long-term care systems in sub-Saharan Africa. WHO series on long-term care on healthy ageing
In sub-Saharan Africa, families provide the majority of care for older adults. The number of older people in the region, will more than triple from 46...
Additional publications linked to COVID-19
More resources for care for older persons in the context of COVID-19: Access here
Infection prevention and control guidance for long-term care facilities in the context...
Rapid hospital readiness checklist: Interim Guidance
Access the tool: Rapid hospital readiness checklist: tool Use and content Countries can use this checklist of hospital governance, structures, plans and...
Use and contentThis self-assessment tool is designed for acute health-care facilities (i.e. tertiary and secondary) but can be modified for the use in...
Journal articles
Artificial intelligence for older people receiving long-term care: a systematic review of acceptability and effectiveness studies
A recommended package of Long-Term Care Services to promote healthy ageing based on a WHO Global Expert Consensus Study
Implementing care for healthy ageing
Focus on dementia
iSupport for Dementia
Caregiving for people with dementia can take a heavy physical and emotional toll. To help caregivers, WHO has launched iSupport, a support programme. iSupport helps caregivers understand the impact of dementia, deal with challenging behaviour, provide good care, and take care of themselves.