Silver Opportunity : Case Studies - The Growing Gap of Unmet Need : Assessing the Demand for, and Supply of, Home-Based Support for Older Adults with Disabilities in Thirty-One Countries (English)

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that, as of 2011, about 15 percent of the global population suffered from disabilities (WHO 2011). Although more recent estimates are not available, the evidence strongly suggests that global population aging may be leading to greater disability. This means that although the prevalence of disability among people ages 60 and over in the 2000s was 43.4 percent and 29.5 percent in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) and high-income countries (HICs), respectively. One of the standard ways in which health systems measure disability—in particular, the extent to which a person cannot take care of themselves and live on their own is to document the individual’s capacity to perform a range of tasks referred to as Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADLs). The evidence shows that the impact of ADL/IADL limitations on older adults is significant. This paper first describes the prevalence, characteristics, and temporal trends of ADL/IADL limitations and unmet care needs among older adults across a diverse sample of 31 countries. It also examines the socioeconomic factors that contribute to the prevalence of ADL/IADL limitations and unmet care needs, as well as the gap between the demand for care by older adults with disabilities, and the supply of care to them. The unique aspect of this study is its multi-country approach. That lens offers a comprehensive understanding of the situation and its variability across countries and highlights potential lessons for countries with a high prevalence of ADL/IADL limitations and unmet care needs.