Defining ‘older people’ in Chile
Challenges in planning policies for ageing populations
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 11490397 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Pablo Villalobos Dintrans (0000-0002-2236-6447, Ministry of Health, Monjitas 565, Santiago 8320070, Chile, corresponding author), Catalina Izquierdo (Ministry of Health, Monjitas 565, Santiago 8320070, Chile), R P De Guzman (0000-0003-3963-1013, Ministry of Health), René Guzmán (Ministry of Health, Monjitas 565, Santiago 8320070, Chile), María José Gálvez (Ministry of Health, Monjitas 565, Santiago 8320070, Chile), Sylvia Santander (Ministry of Health, Monjitas 565, Santiago 8320070, Chile) |
| Year | 2021 |
| Volume | 35 |
| Issue | 10 |
| Pages | 1347-1353 |
| Publication date | 2021-02-16 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Health Policy and Planning (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0268-1080 • E-ISSN: 1460-2237 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1093/heapol/czaa113 |
| PMID | 33296462 |
| OpenAlex | W3113352871 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 5 |
| References cited | 6 |
The concept of older adult is extensively used in day-to-day discussions and public policy. Nonetheless, concrete operational definitions are scarce. This poses a challenge for policymakers when designing initiatives targeted to this population. Chronological age has been traditionally used as the sole criteria for identifying older people (OP). However, there is no consensus about what is the age that should define an elderly. The issue became evident when, in 2018, the Chilean Ministry of Health started a planning process to coordinate health initiatives for OP. Two thresholds had been commonly used—60 and 65 years—and the differences between choosing one and the other were significant. This article intends to structure the debate around age thresholds and the definition of OP in Chile, presenting information and evidence to guide decision-makers when deciding about the issue. Information was based on international guidelines and definitions, laws and practice in the country and epidemiological data. The analysis shows a lack of consensus when dealing with the definition of OP using age thresholds at every level. Results highlight the difficulty of using age as a guide for designing policies for OP and call for a more holistic way for identifying OP as beneficiaries of targeted programmes, considering the heterogeneity of this population and the availability of information. This debate is much needed in many countries that, like Chile, will experience significant demographic changes and face the challenges of healthy ageing
Christian ministry · Economic growth · Economics · Environmental health · Face (sociological concept) · Political science · Population · Population ageing · Process (computing) · Public health · Public relations · Social science · Sociology · Aging and Gerontology Research · Computer Science · Health disparities and outcomes · Law · Medicine · Migration, Aging, and Tourism Studies · Nursing
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| Unique citing works | 5 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,83 |
| Citation span | 2020 - 2025 (6) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 4 |