Various measures have been developed to forecast the care needs of an ageing population. One of the most commonly used projections is to estimate disability-free life expectancy. United States estimates, for example, predict the number of severely disabled older people will fall by half between the year 2000 and 2050 if current trends continue. About one-fifth of older people in developed countries currently receive formal care, i.e. medical or social services. In fact, in recent years, many developed countries have moved away from providing care in institutions in favour of care that allows older people to remain in the community, in their own homes, for as long as possible.
Older people are both the receivers and the providers of care.
As well as caring for grandchildren and their own children, many older people care for other family members, especially their spouses and sometimes their own, often very aged, parents. In fact, many of the 'young' old provide care for the very old. Such care is often provided out of affection, but also out of a sense of obligation and with the expectation of reciprocity. The demands of providing such care may be stressful and sometimes detrimental to the caregiver's own health. Recognising caregiver stress and assisting the informal family caregiver, who is most often a woman, should be an important policy objective in the design of caregiving strategies.