Contacts
An exploratory research by Fosti, Longo and Rappini highlights the divide between demand and supply and identifies in the integration of the resources a strategy for innovating Italian welfare

Almost 3 million elderly people in Italy are not self-sufficient: over-65 citizens who need social, medical or psychological assistance. Who takes care of them? In 47% of cases it is a relative – with huge costs –who takes charge of the patient: 9 interviewed out of 10 say they don't have any external qualified point of reference able to support them in the assistance.

A deep and widespread gap emerges between the people's needs and the services supplied which either are not sufficient to cover the demand or are not utilized by their recipients because they are considered inadequate. What can be done to fill this gap?

This question is addressed by the research conducted by SDA Bocconi's Observatory on Private Consumption in Health with the new Executive Master in Management of Health and Social Care Organizations (EMMAS). The evidences of the research have been presented at the recent conference «Il gap tra bisogni e servizi nella Long Term Care: prospettive di policy e di sviluppo imprenditoriale» organized by SDA Bocconi and KCS caregiver Cooperativa sociale to promote innovation in the welfare system and to identify innovative formats able to address the specific needs of the population.

Valeria Rappini illustrated the results of the investigation on the needs of non self-sufficient elderly people, while Giovanni Fosti and Francesco Longo focused on the prospects and the needs for change of Long Term Care. The results highlight a very fragmented picture, characterized by a limited allocation of resources, by a plurality of dispensers and by an extended phenomenon of self-organization.

The integration of the resources - responsibilities, healthcare pathways and knowledge – is the operational proposal which emerged from the meeting in order to identify sustainable healthcare models.

Research