Managing an ageing population: Lessons the UK could learn from Cuba

Abstract

Both the UK and Cuba face an ageing population, which presents major challenges for their health and social care sectors. Although the UK is considerably more developed than Cuba, its disorganised and inadequate community services for older people, combined with a less preventative approach to the health of its older population have increased pressure on care homes and hospitals alike. In contrast, Cuba’s cheaper, preventative and holistic elderly care programme integrates health and social care to sufficiently serve its older population. This article demonstrates the flaws in the UK elderly care system and highlights the successes of the Cuban system, before formulating three suggested areas of research for potential implementation in the UK based on Cuban principles. These are: 1) associating care homes with medical professionals, 2) overhauling the NHS health check system and 3) providing each local authority with a wider variety of facilities for the older person. Modelling Cuba’s elderly care system with these suggestions may improve the management of an ageing population in the UK by increasing disease prevention and care planning. This should improve the overall health of the UK’s older population whilst saving the health service both money and time.