What UK could learn from Japanese social care

BRITAIN should learn from the Japanese model of social care, which has compulsory insurance and pensioners are encouraged to take part in tai chi and origami to combat loneliness, a think tank has suggested.

The proposal comes as ministers are due to publish a Green Paper on the future of social care this summer.

The Nuffield Trust said Japan had struggled with the same problems that are now facing the UK, with hospitals becoming “de facto nursing homes”.

In 2000, it introduced long-term care insurance, with compulsory payments from the age of 40 used to provide care for those aged over 65. In addition, those who take up care are expected to pay 10 to 30 per cent of the cost.

The system has national standards of eligibility and a commitment to longterm prevention of loneliness. Free lunch clubs, tai chi classes and workshops are all offered.

Natasha Curry, senior fellow in health policy at the trust, said: “The Japanese system is not a ‘silver bullet’ to solving the crisis in social care in England...but it offers some important lessons. [It] suggests there is real value in embedding transparency and flexibility in the system, helping people navigate their way around it, and promoting healthy living.”