Senior Service Complex in Zhejiang Province Enabled more Elders to Access to Professional Senior Service

Recently, Zhejiang province printed and issued Suggestions on the Implementation of Deepening Senior Service Complex Reform and Improving Senior Service Quality(hereinafter Suggestions),in which had put forward the idea of building up a series of ‘senior service complex’ in the process of promoting current senior service industry a higher quality one for the first time.

Chen Jianyi, Director of Social Welfare and Elderly Service Department of Zhejiang Civil Administration Office told reporters that  a total number of 23,600 home-based care centers was established last year, covering both rural and urban communities. However, home-based care and institution care were used to independent, and there was a shortage of professional service of home based care.

With the available resources, it was extremely crucial to effectively integrate resources of institution care, home-based care and medical service to improve senior service quality and enable more elders to access to professional service. According to Chen, the key issues in establishing ‘senior service complex’ were sharing resources and using professional advantages. Sharing resources was vital in establishing ‘senior service complex’. For instance, senior apartment should first meet the diverse demands of elders in the apartment, but also offer service to elders in the community, realizing resources exchange and enabling home-bound seniors to access to various and professional service.  Despite sharing resources, improving service standard using different methods was also advocated. The government should not only provide planning and directions, and combine various senior care functions, but also provide policy support, fully mobilize the motivation of senior care institutions to serve home-bound seniors.