Managing Health Care Needs of the Elderly through an Elderly Care Manager: Thailand

<strong>Objective: </strong>This mixed method research aimed to investigate health needs of older people and the attributes of the Elderly Care Managers (ECMs), and to evaluate the outcomes of two ECMs coordination. <strong>Method</strong>s: Three phases were: 1) a field survey of the health needs of 94 older persons; 2) group discussions between ten relevant persons involved in ECMs characteristics; 3) two ECMs coordinating with health-related agencies and measuring the outcomes of older people who needed assistance. <strong>Results:</strong> 63.1% of the participants had difficulties with their health, 12.8% of them had no caregiver, 26.6% of them had &gt;1 health condition. Group talks dealt with the characteristics, role and attributes of ECMs. The two-month of ECMs coordination with health-related agencies according to older adults' needs, and made home visits encouraged the aged to acquire knowledge on their diseases. <strong>Conclusion</strong>: ECMs’s coordination with health-related agencies could support the needs of those of advanced age<strong>研究目标：</strong>本混合方法研究旨在调研老年人的健康需求与老年护理专员（Elderly Care Managers，ECMs）的岗位特质，并评估两项老年护理专员协作模式的实施效果。 <strong>研究方法：</strong>研究共分为三个阶段：1）针对94名老年人开展健康需求实地调研；2）组织10名相关人员围绕老年护理专员的岗位特征、工作职责开展小组讨论；3）由两名老年护理专员对接健康相关机构，并对有协助需求的老年人的服务效果进行量化评估。 <strong>研究结果：</strong>63.1%的受访老年人存在健康功能障碍，12.8%的老年人无照料者，26.6%的老年人存在1种及以上健康问题。小组讨论围绕老年护理专员的岗位特征、角色定位与核心特质展开。为期两个月的老年护理专员协作实践，根据老年人的实际需求对接健康相关机构并开展上门访视，有效助力老年人掌握自身疾病相关的健康知识。 <strong>研究结论：</strong>老年护理专员与健康相关机构开展协作，能够有效满足高龄老年人的健康服务需求。