ABSTRACT
Quality of life has become a predominant issue in the care of older people in hospitals and homes. Shifts in health care philosophy in the past 50 years have placed the issue firmly in the centre of health care delivery and the development of the health care environment. While previous models of care management focused strongly on the physical, medical and functional dimensions of care, quality of life management also focuses on social and psychological dimensions of well-being. Consequently, maintaining and developing quality of life for older people-their social and psychological functioning-will increasingly shape the agenda in health care delivery in the coming years.
