engleski

The Organization of Nursing Care for Elderly People in the European Community

Introduction: The number of people older than 65 in Europe is increasing and, according to Eurostat’s data, in 2016 19, 2 % of Europe’s population was older than 65. A large percentage of elderly people lives alone - in Europe this number is 32 %, in Slovenia it is 34 %, and in Croatia it is 29 %. Community nursing plays an essential role in the early recognition and treatment of medical and social problems of elderly people in the community. However, in Europe, the job of community nurses differs from one state to another in terms of regulation and evaluation and it is often concentrated on getting the job done, while outside of Europe, the emphasis is placed on taking care of elderly people in their own homes, thus making the patient the center of attention. Methods: By searching full text articles written in the last 10 years in the databases PUBMED and MEDLINE using the key words “community nursing”, “elderly” or “old people”, “community-dwelling older people”, “Europe”, 16 relevant articles were found. Results: The found articles describe the research studying the job of community nurses in well-developed European states. The research indicate a positive cooperation with other medical professionals, good results in taking care of patients with chronical illnesses and preventing deterioration of the illness, as well as active participation in healthy aging programs. Discussion: Community nurses play an important role in taking care of elderly people, both the ill and the healthy, in the community, and their role is preventive, curative and palliative. What is important is the individual approach to the patients, and not just accomplishing the task. Conclusion: In order to gain wider insight in the job of community nurses, and considering their important tasks, it is necessary for future research to analyze the education of community nurses and the regional differences in the care of elderly people.

elderly people, nurses, community, nursing care, Europe

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