Long-term care facilities and research: how COVID-19 changes things

Ano: 2020 | Volume: 14 | Número: 4

Autores: Adam Lee Gordon

Palavras-chave: long-term care facilities; COVID-19; editorial

Resumo Inglês:

Long-term care facilities (LTCF) provide 24-hour care predominantly for older people with complex physical or cognitive disabilities who can no longer be supported at home. They are configured differently and provide slightly different models of care between countries.1 Differences relate to funding models, how staff are trained, the balance between health and social care within organizational ethos, how healthcare inputs are co-ordinated, and how data are collated and used to assure and improve care. The long-term care sector differs in maturity between countries and is at its most developed in countries which are wealthier, and those with socialized healthcare systems. Regardless of these differences, the people cared for in LTCF are very similar internationally, and experience marked multimorbidity, frailty, and cognitive impairment.2 Many are nearing the end of their lives and, in most countries, older people who move into LTCF will subsequently die there.3