Description
Intermediate care is a phrase often associated with
confusion as it describes an array of apparently different
services, mostly aimed at preventing or curtailing acute
hospital admissions for elderly people. Trial evidence
examining some of these services is conflicting both in terms
of their efficacy and cost implications. This review takes a
broad look at the development and meaning of intermediate
care, as well as reviewing some of the recent trial data
regarding its effectiveness. In doing so, it describes
intermediate care as a care concept, rather than specific
service, and helps place its relevance within the broader social
framework of a rapidly aging population, whilst questioning
the appropriateness of the randomised controlled trial as a
means of evaluating it.
