The Social Care System for Elderly

Abstract

The objectives of the study of Social Care System for Elderly are to study and synthesize meaning, area and format including mechanism of social care for dependent elderly in abroad to present guidelines for integrating health care and social care system for dependent elderly in Thailand. This study is documentary research which data are collected from textbooks, research reports, academic journals, theses and related electronic data about social care in Thailand and other countries such as United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Australia and Japan. Due to those countries have good role models for elderly welfare that could be applied and presented integrating of health and social care for Thailand. The findings are as follows;
Social care is the system designed to help, protect and educate elderly who face physical and psychological problems. It would help elderly to self-support in daily life or help them to better develop their potentials. The formats of social care service are family, social and also institutional levels. In addition, social care mechanism setting must start from government agencies as the center to set policies, resources, administrative formats, service formats, budgets including responsibility transition to local authorities and create formal and informal social care networks for always and thoroughly driving care to elderly and families to create good quality of life to elderly. The important mechanism to push dependent elderly to effective service is to consider elderly qualifications and set channels to access social care services as the following steps: 1) Examining elderly rights 2) Evaluating elderly for considering care activities 3) Paying care expenses 4) Getting services according care activities.
The recommendations for developing social care system for elderly divide into 5 aspects: 1) Creating basic concept, importance and readiness of social care 2) Seeking ways for developing suitable social care service for elderly 3) Planning to produce and develop human resources who expertise in caring elderly with quality 4) Setting administrative approach for driving elderly implementation 5) Setting and integrating funds for health and social care.