FRAME OF REFERENCE FOR THE ELABORATION OF POLICIES FOR LONG-TERM-CARE.1. CONSTITUENT ELEMENTS

The elements of a conceptual scheme for long-term care (LTC) were deve loped based on two lines of thought. The first, more practical, borrow s from planning. The second, which is more theoretical, reflects socio logical action theories. Planning is defined as an action that targets the development of a plan. Using values, desires, resources and const raints as a starting point, operational objectives are defined and mea ns chosen. Planning focuses on four themes: (1) establishment of prior ities, (2) setting up organizations in the form of agencies, (3) choos ing objectives and (4) defining resources. These four themes are analy zed in turn, with each producing four elements defining a total of 16 themes, dilemmas, problems or issues specific to LTC. The relationship s between these elements, which are by definition prescriptive, form t he core of our proposal for an LTC planning model.