Public-private partnership in care provision for ageing-in-place: A comparative study in Guangdong, China

This paper investigates how the public-private partnership (PPP) functions in the care provision for older people in Guangdong, China, particularly for ageing-in-place programs.

Three cities with diversified PPP forms of care provision for older people were chosen as case studies. Focus groups were conducted in these cities for the local authorities and care homes involved in the partnerships.

Three forms of PPP, including private sector involvement for the ownership, construction, and operation of the facilities delivering care services, were identified. The public-private co-constructed and privately run model with greater private sector involvement may lead to higher quality care in one specific program. The publicly constructed and privately run program is widely used in many cities, advancing the expansion of ageing-in-place programs in more communities. These PPPs reflect flexible and practical collaboration between the public and private sectors at the local level in the Chinese context.

PPP have accelerated the development of a better care system for older people, mainly in terms of more affordable and higher-quality care options for the public. They are also a feasible solution for the local government due to more cost-effective and sustainable care provisions than previous publicly provided programs. The specific forms adopted are primarily associated with the scale of home care provision for ageing-in-place and the local government's financial capacity. Despite increasing private sector involvement, the public sector retains its crucial role in delivering care services targeting ageing in China.