Our goal
Advance the measurement and monitoring of unmet health and social care needs of older people at a global level
CARETRACK builds on an already substantial body of knowledge and expertise assembled in gerontology and related fields over several decades. However, that international body of knowledge is not always fully accessible or relevant within the social and economic circumstances of countries with substantially fewer resources for conducting research and monitoring of unmet health and social care needs of older people.
CARETRACK aims to fulfil the need to assess the ‘state of the art’ of existing knowledge, as it varies across countries/regions as well as academic fields and identify and provide guidance and support to operationalization monitoring of unmet health and social care needs in older people.
Model of health and social/support care need for older people
This model was developed through consultation with the colloquia and builds on the work of Tanahashi, Levesque, Anderson & Newman, and Penchansky & Thomas.
The Tanahashi model [1] of health service coverage (predisposing and enabling factors that operate at the individual level (DEMAND SIDE) and how these interact with the system level factors (SUPPLY SIDE). These two “sides” are consistent with the Levesque et al. [2] model which built on the seminal works of Andersen and Newman [3], Penchansky and Thomas [4], and others. The Levesque et al. [2] model conceptualizes five dimensions which reflect characteristics of services [approachability, acceptability, availability, affordability, appropriateness]; and five related dimensions that reflect the abilities of service users [ability to perceive, seek, reach, pay, and engage]. This model for health and social/support care for older people includes these dimensions reflecting the individual level factors on the DEMAND (or need) side, and the system level factors on the SUPPLY (or health care) side as well as the policy and community drivers of need.
[3] Andersen, R. and J.F. Newman, Societal and individual determinants of medical care utilization in the United States. The Milbank Memorial Fund Quarterly. Health and Society, 1973: p. 95-124.
[4] Penchansky, R. and J.W. Thomas, The concept of access: definition and relationship to consumer satisfaction. Medical care, 1981: p. 127-140.