Rehabilitation Service Delivery Models to Foster Healthy Ageing in the WHO European Region: Results From a Cross-Sectional Stakeholder Consultation Involving 45 Countries.
Background: As populations age, rehabilitation needs are increasing sharply. Older people experience declining intrinsic capacity, multimorbidity, and environmental barriers, which intensify their reliance on rehabilitation to optimize and maintain functional ability. Despite its critical role in he...
| Publicado en: | Advances in Rehabilitation Science & Practice Vol. 15; pp. 1 - 21 |
|---|---|
| Autores principales: | , , , , , , , , , |
| Formato: | research tables/charts Journal Article |
| Publicado: |
Sage Publications Inc.
3/26/2026
|
| Acceso en línea: | Ver este registro en EBSCOhost |
| fields | @attributes: recordID: 1 pdfLink: plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=192584992&site=ehost-live header: @attributes: shortDbName: ccm uiTerm: 192584992 longDbName: CINAHL Complete uiTag: AN controlInfo: bkinfo: dissinfo: jinfo: jid: 27536351 N7A5 jtl: Advances in Rehabilitation Science & Practice issn: 27536351 maglogo: Y pubinfo: dt: 3/26/2026 vid: 15 pid: 344 pub: Sage Publications Inc. place: Thousand Oaks, California artinfo: ui: 192584992 192584992 192584992 10.1177/27536351261419007 192584992 ppf: 1 ppct: 20 formats: fmt: – @attributes: type: T – @attributes: type: P tig: atl: Rehabilitation Service Delivery Models to Foster Healthy Ageing in the WHO European Region: Results From a Cross-Sectional Stakeholder Consultation Involving 45 Countries. aug: au: Seijas, Vanessa Maritz, Roxanne Yee, Julia Moreira, Beatriz Lussi, Clara Limacher, Andreas Yon, Yongjie Kiani, Shirin Zapata, Tomas Sabariego, Carla affil: Center for Rehabilitation in Global Health Systems, WHO Collaborating Center, Faculty of Health Sciences and Medicine, University of Lucerne, Switzerland sug: subj: Healthy Aging World Health Organization Europe Rehabilitation Centers Health Care Delivery Referral and Consultation Health Services for Older Persons Stakeholder Participation Health Services Accessibility Evaluation Human Funding Source Europe Female Male Adolescence Adult Middle Age Aged Cross Sectional Studies Secondary Analysis Multimethod Studies Thematic Analysis Purposive Sample Snowball Sample Outpatients Inpatients Home Health Care Telerehabilitation Community Health Services Adolescent: 13-18 years Adult: 19-44 years Middle Aged: 45-64 years Aged: 65+ years Female Male ab: Background: As populations age, rehabilitation needs are increasing sharply. Older people experience declining intrinsic capacity, multimorbidity, and environmental barriers, which intensify their reliance on rehabilitation to optimize and maintain functional ability. Despite its critical role in healthy ageing, access to rehabilitation remains limited across the WHO European Region (WHO EURO). Aim: To examine the availability, implementation, and challenges of rehabilitation service delivery for older people in WHO EURO from the perspectives of rehabilitation stakeholders. Design and Methods: We conducted a secondary mixed-methods analysis of a 2023/2024 global online survey called "Rehabilitation Service Delivery to Foster Healthy Ageing," initially designed to identify and validate global rehabilitation delivery models, focusing on WHO EURO data. The survey, offered in 8 languages, targeted health and care workers providing rehabilitation for people aged 60 and above. Quantitative and qualitative data were analysed descriptively, thematically, and integrated using the Health System Dynamics Framework. Reporting followed CROSS and MMR-RHS guidelines. Results: 706 responses from 45 countries were analysed. Six validated rehabilitation delivery models were confirmed: outpatient, inpatient, home, telerehabilitation, community, and residential long-term care. Findings revealed disparities in the availability of these models and in the responsiveness – assessed through a self-designed responsiveness index – of rehabilitation services to ageing populations, varying by country and income level. Strengthening outpatient, home, and residential long-term rehabilitation was considered most urgently needed. Barriers and facilitators to strengthening rehabilitation were identified across all domains of the Health System Dynamics Framework and synthesized into 8 themes and 19 subthemes. Discussion: Rehabilitation models remain unevenly implemented across Europe, and inequities in provision persist. Systemic barriers span governance, financing, human resources, and service delivery, underlining the importance of integrated approaches that reflect older people's realities and priorities. Conclusion: Rehabilitation plays a key role not only after illness or injury but also in maintaining functional ability during age-related declines in intrinsic capacity. Strengthening rehabilitation for older people is essential for Healthy Ageing and requires investment, intersectoral collaboration, and implementation science to overcome systemic barriers. pubtype: Academic Journal doctype: research tables/charts Journal Article ougenre: Article language: English refInfo: holdings: @attributes: islocal: N |
|---|