International Experience in the Organization of Informal Care for the Elderly

Abstract

This article examines international experience in the state provision of family care for the elderly. Family care is often more desirable and psychologically comfortable for elderly and disabled people than market-based and social services. In terms of explicit costs, family care is usually the most affordable way for the family to provide support. Moreover, family care is cost-effective for the state due to cost reduction in social services for elderly and disabled people. In Russia, a system of state support for family care is still developing. One of the main state measures for supporting caregivers is a compensation payment of 1 200 rubles. The study aims to outline possible prospects for the development of state support for family care in Russia based on a critical analysis of international experience. The analysis was based on existing research on social support measures for family care in different countries. In general, there are three main governmental levels of supporting measures for family caregivers: financial support and services directly intended to the caregiver; services indirectly supporting caregivers; and the institutional environment that determines the ‘rules of the game’ in implementing kinship care. The author found that financial support is the most common way to support caregivers in Europe. In some other countries (for example, Canada, USA) there are tax benefits for those providing care. However, it was mentioned that the main disadvantage of monetary support for caregivers is that this reduces opportunities for formal employment. In that regard, it is necessary to implement measures to support the ability of caregivers to combine work and family care. Flexible working conditions for caregivers are provided, for example, in the UK, Australia, USA and other countries.