[Premises of a qualitative change in geriatric care]

This paper rests on the premises that in the health service, the nursing care of the elderly is based on an "illness" model and concerned with symptom relief. The concept of "holistic care" is a theoretical objective rather than reality in practice. It is suggested that it is realistic, in the light of experience in the care of the aged, to predict a qualitative change, a move towards an orientation for health promotion. If old people are in need of nursing care, emphasis should be placed on their life history and on the personal frame of reference from which they view the current situation. Their capabilities to use compensatory mechanisms should be stressed. The carers should be helped in the management of problem situations and their verbal and non-verbal communications should be subtly encouraged.