TY - CHAP
T1 - Primary care and long-term care for older adults in Hong Kong—An Integrative Approach
AU - Kan, Wing Shan
AU - Pau, Margaret Mei Lin
AU - Chui, Ernest Wing Tak
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2025.
PY - 2025/3/29
Y1 - 2025/3/29
N2 - Due to extended life expectancy and low fertility rates among its population, Hong Kong is facing a formidable demographic challenge brought about by ageing. This has exerted great pressure on Hong Kong’s health and social care systems, especially evident during the COVID-19 pandemic, which revealed the extent to which existing systems fail to fully address the changing needs of older adults. According to the World Health Organization, chronic diseases are replacing traditional infectious diseases as the leading cause of disability and death in the world. Around 2.2 million people in Hong Kong live with chronic diseases, of whom almost 60% are older adults. Ageing is the main risk factor for most chronic diseases, such as stroke, diabetes and heart disease. The increasing prevalence of chronic diseases increases the demand for long-term care (LTC). Coping with the increasing need for LTC requires health promotion, disease prevention and disease management in the community, all of which are currently inadequate to meet the needs of the older population. In Hong Kong, the future development of the healthcare system will shift from a treatment-oriented to a prevention-oriented regime through a community-based primary healthcare system. How to bridge the gaps between health and social care to ensure a sustainable LTC system is an urgent question for policymakers and service providers. An integrated care system for a seamless continuum of care is needed, especially in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
AB - Due to extended life expectancy and low fertility rates among its population, Hong Kong is facing a formidable demographic challenge brought about by ageing. This has exerted great pressure on Hong Kong’s health and social care systems, especially evident during the COVID-19 pandemic, which revealed the extent to which existing systems fail to fully address the changing needs of older adults. According to the World Health Organization, chronic diseases are replacing traditional infectious diseases as the leading cause of disability and death in the world. Around 2.2 million people in Hong Kong live with chronic diseases, of whom almost 60% are older adults. Ageing is the main risk factor for most chronic diseases, such as stroke, diabetes and heart disease. The increasing prevalence of chronic diseases increases the demand for long-term care (LTC). Coping with the increasing need for LTC requires health promotion, disease prevention and disease management in the community, all of which are currently inadequate to meet the needs of the older population. In Hong Kong, the future development of the healthcare system will shift from a treatment-oriented to a prevention-oriented regime through a community-based primary healthcare system. How to bridge the gaps between health and social care to ensure a sustainable LTC system is an urgent question for policymakers and service providers. An integrated care system for a seamless continuum of care is needed, especially in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
KW - Chronic diseases
KW - Empowerment
KW - Engagement
KW - Governance
KW - Integrated care
KW - Long-term care
UR - https://link.springer.com/book/9789819608164
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=105002455973&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/978-981-96-0817-1_21
DO - 10.1007/978-981-96-0817-1_21
M3 - Chapter
SN - 9789819608164
SN - 9789819608195
T3 - Quality of Life in Asia
SP - 325
EP - 337
BT - The Handbook of Primary Healthcare
A2 - Fong, Ben Yuk Fai
A2 - Law, Vincent Tin Sing
A2 - Lee, Albert
PB - Springer
ER -
