Older people's services. A picture of health.
A scheme offering joint health and social care assessments to people aged over 75 in inner London identified more than a quarter in need of services. The older people were accessed via general practice, but this proved an inefficient way of identifying the target population. In some practices, almost half of those contacted were no longer at the same address. The assessments, conducted by a community nurse and social welfare officer, often involved two visits. The mobility of the elderly population needs to be taken into account when planning joint assessments. Organisations involved had different aspirations for the scheme and management proved problematic.
Primary Care Nursing Research Unit, Department of Primary Care and Population Sciences,  Royal Free and University College Medical School, London.
Vari
V
Drennan
Steve
S
Iliffe
Deborah
D
Haworth
Sharon See
SS
Tai
Penny
P
Lenihan
Toity
T
Deave
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D005194:Family Practice / Q000458:organization & administration; D005260:Female; D006302:Health Services Research; D006299:Health Services for the Aged / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006801:Humans; D007373:Interinstitutional Relations; D008131:London; D008297:Male; D016730:Program Development; D011788:Quality of Life; D012947:Social Work / Q000458:organization & administration*; D013222:State Medicine / Q000458:organization & administration*