Grossman's Model Of Case Study In Health And Social Care

3. Method

This project will be undertaken using a secondary data research approach in the form of a case study. This has been chosen due to the efficiency of utilising the volume of previous research conducted by respected organisations such as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) an intergovernmental economics and welfare research group, the Office of National Statistics (ONS) and the UK Government Office for Science (GOS) whose work will form the basis of the case study. A secondary data project also allows for greater assessment through theoretical models and the ability to review different interpretations and terminology analysis which will ensure that any findings are a fair review of the research topic.

This will then be developed with a review of the content using DD309 course materials, with particular reference to chapters 9 and 16 due to their focus on economic welfare and care provision.

From an initial search of both the Internet and the Open University Library using the keywords; ageing, care and efficiency, full search terms were developed based on those search results and associated references for example problems of an ageing population, care provision policy and microeconomic analysis of health and social care.

In the discussion section, both quantitative and qualitative information from the GOS report and the OECD related to the provision of UK health and social care will be used to initially identify what the problems of an ageing society could be. Extracts from the report will then be used to assess the efficacy of government initiatives and policies suggested to address the related issues for an increasing demographic of the population aged 65 and over.

This content will then be used to formulate a conclusion of how policy makers might make decisions based on government commissioned reports and their resulting responses following the publication of similar information

There are a number of combinations that can be achieved along a curve diagram referred to as an indifference curve as the same level of welfare will be achieved at any point therefore an individual would be not be highly concerned with the potential outcomes. The curve slopes downwards demonstrating that as health increases, consumption is reduced, with the opposite also shown in Figure 6. Fig. 6 Health and consumption indifference curve

For the discussion section of this project it will be required to consider the report ‘Future of an Ageing Population’ produced by the Government Office for Science. Initial findings in relation to health and social care were that:

Ageing will increase the total amount of ill-health and disability in the population. There will be an accompanying change in the nature of ill-health, with a relative shift away from acute illness towards chronic conditions, multi-morbidities, cognitive impairments and long-term frailty. In parallel, families and communities will play an increasing role in providing care services. (GOS, 2016,