Disability in older adults 3: Policy implications

Several models of disability proposed in recent years share many common ele ments and are helping to direct research and inform practice. One new devel opment is that disablement, a concept that emphasizes the impairments-handi cap continuum, is now being implemented by concepts related to enablement. Enablement focuses attention on the capacity for rehabilitation. Coincident ally, a new generation of functional assessment measures has evolved that a llow greater sensitivity not only to levels of disability bur also to level s of ability. Together; the new models and tools hold promise of providing a more sensitive evaluation of rehabilitation efforts and a more accurate f orecasting of future needs.