Social care for disabled elderly women in urban China: The roles of the community

Abstract

This article analyses the provision of community care for urban disabled elderly women. With the emergence of an aging society in China and the empty nest syndrome in Chinese families, the number of elderly people who cannot take care of themselves is increasing. With the reduction in family size and the weakening of the home care function, traditional family care in China is facing immense challenges. On the one hand, a growing number of disabled elderly women are in urgent need of care; they encounter many difficulties in daily life, including poor health status, the loss of their spouse and living alone, an inability to support themselves economically, the lack of a spiritual life, and a significant reliance on their children to take care of them. On the other hand, the family's function of providing for the elderly has been weakened, and the traditional way of care is affected by the changes in modern society. Based on a qualitative study in Beijing, this article examines the demand for care from disabled elderly women and the current supply of community care. It puts forward a community-centred and targeted assistance model and social work intervention. This study argues that the community care system for disabled elderly women in urban areas should focus on four aspects, namely living care, medical care, spiritual consolation, and emergency assistance; and the protection mechanism should be improved to support disabled elderly women from three aspects: a protection system, a fund guarantee and services from health and social care staff and social workers.