Caring for the oldest old

doi:10.1136/bmj.39141.534190.80

BMJ 2007;334:546-547 (17 March), doi:10.1136/bmj.39141.534190.80

Editorials

Caring for the oldest old

As the population ages the costs of care will rise

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

When a 70 year old woman collects a prescription from the pharmacist,no one is surprised. But, it is for her mother. And she mustrush back because her mother doesn't see very well, is a littleconfused, and her daughter doesn't like to leave her for toolong on her own. Times change. We are all getting older andliving longer so our traditional age structured model of societyhas had to evolve. No longer are people young, middle aged,and old, but increasingly they are also the "oldest old." Inthis week's BMJ, Robine and colleagues present a "four age populationmodel," whereby the future long term care needs of the oldestpeople can be estimated."¹ These frail elderly people, whomwe are likely to become, are increasingly important as consumersof health resources and a focus for future care.

The irony of longer life is an . . . [Full text of this article]

Domhnall MacAuley, primary care editor¹, Zoe Slote Morris, Nuffield fellow in health policy²

¹ BMJ, Tavistock Square, London WC1H 9JR, ² Judge Business School, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 1AG

dmacauley@bmj.com

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Who will care for the oldest people in our ageing society?: Jean-Marie Robine, Jean-Pierre Michel, and François R Herrmann
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