Discussing Long-term Prognosis in Primary Care

Long-term prognosis of depression in primary care.

This article uses longitudinal data from a primary care sample to examine long-term prognosis of depression. A sample of 225 patients initiating antidepressant treatment in primary care completed assessments of clinical outcome (Hamilton Depression Rating Scale and the mood module of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IIIR) 1, 3, 6, 9, 12, 18 and 24 months after initiating treatment. The...

The Evolution of Long-term Care Programs; Comment on “Financing Long-term Care: Lessons From Japan”

The need for long-term care (LTC) represents a “new social risk,” one that overlaps with and complements systems of care that pre-date such programs, complicating LTC program design. This commentary expands on Ikegami’s discussion of how these structural factors must be accommodated, as well as historical and cultural factors that influence public expectations of such a...

Current Status of Long-term Care in Taiwan: Transition of Long-term Care Plan From 1.0 to 2.0

Financing Long-Term Care: Lessons From Japan

Long-term care (LTC) must be carefully delineated when expenditures are compared across countries because how LTC services are defined and delivered differ in each country. LTC’s objectives are to compensate for functional decline and mitigate the care burden of the family. Governments have tended to focus on the poor but Germany opted to make LTC universally available ...

Financing Long-term Care: The Role of Culture and Social Norms; Comment on “Financing Long-term Care: Lessons From Japan”

Based on the experiences of Japan and Germany, Ikegami argues that middle-income countries should introduce public long-term care insurance (LTCi) at an early stage, before benefits have expanded as a result of ad hoc policy decisions to win popular support. The experience of the Netherlands, however, shows that an early introduction of public LTCi may not prevent, but ...