The elderly care of the future must look completely different. Due to the great scarcity of personnel and the increasing demand for care, the elderly must become more self-reliant, continue to live at home longer and make greater use of technological innovation. On Monday, Minister Conny Helder (Long-term Care and Sport, VVD) presented plans for this “transformation” of the sector until 2040 in a letter to the House of Representatives.
In Minister Helder’s plans, which were drawn up after consultation with numerous organizations involved in the care of the elderly, care must be provided digitally if possible: for example via video calling with a nurse, assistance from a robot when taking medicines. or a GPS tracker that signals carers. The plans should “increase the quality of care and relieve care providers”, according to the press release accompanying the letter to the House of Representatives.
Due to the aging population, it is expected that more people will make use of elderly care in the future, while the number of care employees will not increase sufficiently. Helder writes to the House that 50,000 homes must be made available by 2030 for the elderly who need intensive care, so that they can continue to live at home for longer. In the coming months, Helder will meet with her colleague Hugo de Jonge (Public Housing and Spatial Planning, CDA) to work out those plans.
Helder’s plans should initiate a change in the coming years, so that the “new standard becomes a reality throughout the Netherlands”, according to the press release. “The non-commitment is over,” Helder writes to the House of Representatives. She says that “a different way of thinking” is needed. Helder wants to implement its plans in phases and in collaboration with numerous organisations. Over the next five years, 770 million euros will be made available for the plans. (NRC)
A version of this article also appeared in the newspaper of 5 July 2022