Shrestha Sharad, Aro Arja R, Shrestha Bipna, Thapa Subash
Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Southern Denmark, Esbjerg, Denmark.
Unit for Health Promotion Research, University of Southern Denmark, Esbjerg, Denmark.
SAGE Open Med. 2021 Dec 13;9:20503121211066381. doi: 10.1177/20503121211066381. eCollection 2021.
In Nepal, a few governmental and community-based programmes for elderly care are in place; however, information about successful implementation and overall effectiveness of these programmes is not well understood. In this article, we introduced these programmes and discussed existing programmes' gaps and implementation problems in light of existing grey and peer-reviewed evidence. A few notable governmental programmes, such as providing monthly allowances, pensions and free health care, have targeted specifically the elderly individuals. Yet, most health care institutions and providers are privately owned and profit-oriented, and there is a general lack of proper governmental health as well as social security systems for the elderly in the country. Generally, Nepalese communities consist of neighbourhood-based and religious-based groups that provide emotional and spiritual support to elderly individuals as well as provide support for health care access when needed. However, the influence that these groups can have on health and social well-being of elderly remains not well understood. Traditional family-based support systems may be feasible only for some families, while for others it could impose financial and psychological burdens. The role of the state is important in the effective implementation of existing programmes as well as in the development and implementation of additional programmes to ensure health and social well-being of elderly individuals. Furthermore, there is a need to establish partnerships with existing community structures and to mobilize them in the implementation of community-based programmes.
在尼泊尔，有一些政府和社区层面的老年护理项目；然而，关于这些项目成功实施情况及整体成效的信息却鲜为人知。在本文中，我们介绍了这些项目，并根据现有的灰色文献和同行评审证据，讨论了现有项目的差距和实施问题。一些值得注意的政府项目，比如提供月度津贴、养老金和免费医疗服务，专门针对老年人。然而，该国大多数医疗机构和服务提供者都是私立且以盈利为导向的，而且普遍缺乏完善的针对老年人的政府医疗和社会保障体系。一般来说，尼泊尔社区由邻里团体和宗教团体组成，这些团体为老年人提供情感和精神支持，并在需要时为其获得医疗服务提供帮助。然而，这些团体对老年人健康和社会福祉的影响仍未得到充分了解。传统的家庭支持系统可能只对一些家庭可行，而对另一些家庭则可能带来经济和心理负担。国家的作用对于有效实施现有项目以及制定和实施更多项目以确保老年人的健康和社会福祉至关重要。此外，有必要与现有的社区结构建立伙伴关系，并动员它们参与基于社区项目的实施。
