On the issue of improving the organization of medical and social support for the elderly and ­senile people

Abstract

Background. In the context of a pronounced aging of the population, one of the priority areas of social policy in the country is the improvement of the organization and provision of medical and social assistance to people of elderly and senile age. Aim. Substantiation and development of a structural and functional model of a regional (provincial or interregional) geriatric center for further improvement of medical and social care for the elderly and senile. Material and methods. Using a specially designed questionnaire, we analyzed the opinion about the medical and social assistance received by 456 residents of the Moscow Region of elderly and senile age, who were patients of the Moscow Regional Hospital for War Veterans at the time of the survey. Results. Only 47.5% of the respondents of elderly and senile age gave a positive assessment of the received medical care and 50.4% of social assistance. In 83.7% of cases, respondents reported that some social infrastructure facilities are difficult or inaccessible to them, including medical organizations in 16.3% of cases. The survey also made it possible to identify problem areas in the medical and social support of the elderly and senile people associated with the implementation of individual rehabilitation programs, obtaining legal and psychological assistance. The organization of regional geriatric centers is proposed to solve the problems identified in the course of the study and to improve the medical and social support of the elderly and senile. The article describes the tasks of each structural and functional unit of these centers. The available information resources, including those using an interactive mode of communication, are considered to increase the level of information support for the elderly and senile population. Conclusion. The proposed structural and functional model of the regional geriatric center in conditions of implementation of the three-level system for providing geriatric care makes it possible to most effectively use the existing resources of the healthcare system and the social sphere of the region (province), to set and improve organizational, methodological and interdepartmental interaction aimed at increasing the availability and quality of medical and social care for the elderly and senile population.