ABSTRACT
This chapter deals with the scope and variety of the care mix for the elderly. This constitutes the social quality of our welfare state. But quantity goes before quality. The first aspect even considered in studies on quality of services is the availability of services, the number of places and the number of caring personnel, etc. The second aspect should be affordability, the cost for the elderly. It is remarkable that the innovation and emergence of new systems has occurred particularly in the field of care for the elderly. The chapter categorises a selected list of services for the elderly: permanent and temporary residential and semi-residential services, and community services. There are countries with well developed services, such as the high levels of permanent residential and semi-residential services in Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway and the UK. Some countries have better organised housing for the elderly or housing for pensioners, such as the UK and the Netherlands.
