Developing an information base for short-and long-term planning of services for the elderly in Israel: an interim report.

Population aging throughout the Western world has stimulated a concern with the implications for service needs. It has been increasingly recognized that not only the increase in the total number of elderly, but also changes in their composition, are affecting service needs. This paper describes the attempts made to acquire more detailed information on the implications of demographic change for service needs in Israel. It indicates the dimensions of demographic change and then proceeds to present an overall picture of the strategy employed to evaluate the impact of these changes on aspects of health status and the need for community and institutional services.