ABSTRACT

The Balance of Care approach focuses on the long-term care requirements of elderly people according to levels of dependency. The Balance of Care approach was used to try and better understand the nature of that gap and what might be required to start bridging it. Starting from a needs-led approach the system was used to provide initial estimates of dependent elderly people. With no national guidelines, any arrangements have to be established locally, but two-thirds of localities had still not resolved this issue five years on from the Community Care Act. The Balance of Care approach was used to try and better understand the nature of that gap and what might be required to start bridging it. The Balance of Care approach involves a workshop bringing together all of the local key players in the provision of long-term elderly care, across different agencies, and different disciplines.