THE ROLE OF GERIATRIC INTERMEDIATE CARE FACILITIES IN LONG-TERM-CARE FOR THE ELDERLY IN JAPAN

Geriatric intermediate care facilities (GICFs) were first established in 1987 to help the hospitalized elderly return home within 3 months. Users of the GICFs are the elders who do not require hospitalization, but are mentally or physically impaired. Rather than providing unneces sary medical services, GICFs emphasize nursing care and rehabilitation so that users can carry out their daily tasks independently. Due to t he limited supply of institutional and in-home services for the elderl y in long-term care systems in Japan, only half of the discharged user s were able to return home and a quarter stayed at GICFs for over 1 ye ar, contrary to the initial purpose. This suggests that in addition to serving as an intermediate facility between institutions and private homes, GICFs should enlarge their role of home care supporting facilit ies in ways that would enable them to provide frail elderly patients a t home with respite care and daycare services. (C) 1998 Elsevier Scien ce Ireland Ltd.