Geriatric Care in Pakistan: Current Realities and Way Forward

Abstract

Worldwide, the geriatric population rate is 690 million which is alarmingly high and calls for an increasing need for preventive and curative services. In Pakistan, the elderly population is 11.3 million and is expected to increase to 43.3 million by 2050. With the increasing aging population there is an urgent need to improve standards and provision of elderly care in the country. Few geriatric healthcare organizations exist with weak infrastructure resulting in negligence and poor care of the elderly. Older adults have one or more chronic illnesses and complications that contribute to out-of-pocket payments in 73% of the population. Moreover, due to rapidly changing family value systems and sociocultural values, the elderly population is faced with additional challenges such as elder abuse, loneliness, and social isolation. The shrinking of family structure, industrialization, poverty, and prevalence of chronic illnesses among older adults put a massive burden on the family caregivers. Using SWOT and PESTLE analysis, the paper identifies several gaps and discusses various challenges contributing to the access, implementation, and provision of adequate geriatric care services in Pakistan. The paper proposes several strategies including quality home health screening, evidenced based informed care, and training of healthcare professionals to enhance the provision of compassionate and ethical geriatric services to improve the quality of life of elderly and their caregivers in Pakistan.