Making our health and care systems fit for an ageing population: considerations for Canada

A report from the United Kingdom on making health and care systems fit for an ageing population proposes a range of interventions to make care better for older adults, especially those who are frail. Here, we discuss the proposed shift for the acute care hospital to other models of care. The key for these models of care requires a fundamental shift to care that addresses the full range of an individual's needs, rather than being based around single diseases. How this might apply in the Canadian context is considered. We emphasize strategies to keep people out of hospital but still receive needed care, make acute hospital care less hazardous, and improve the interface between acute and long-term care.