Paradigm shift: shaping policy to meet the needs of our aging population

Abstract

The extent to which our aging population impacts the health system is, as Chappell and Hollander suggest, dependent on (1) how that system is defined and organized and (2) our attitudes as a society to aging and the elderly. The Canadian Home Care Association supports the policy prescription described by Chappell and Hollander and believes that a paradigm shift from a reactive and episodic system to one that is proactive and supportive is required. This article expands upon the lead essay by further discussing the role of home care and the need for its integration into the healthcare system. And the article concludes by asserting that we must change our attitude toward aging by improving our understanding of and attention to the needs of older adults.