Enhancing Health Service Delivery to Care for Our Aging Population and Their Caregivers; Comment on “Developing a Conceptual Framework for an Age-Friendly Health System: A Scoping Review”

Document Type : Commentary

Author

Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

Abstract

Karami and colleagues’ scoping review proposes a conceptual framework for age-friendly health systems based on Van Olmen’s 10-element model. The scoping review mapped existing literature on health service delivery for older adults using Arksey and O’Malley’s methodology. They generated a framework that prioritizes person- and family-centered care to reduce harm, improve satisfaction, and enhance value. Key components include strong governance, trained multidisciplinary teams, integrated service delivery across settings, and active involvement of older adults and caregivers in decision-making. The framework aligns with existing age-related models like PRISMA (Program of Research to Integrate the Services for the Maintenance of Autonomy) and the Universal Model of Family-Centered Care. Future research should focus on operationalizing and implementing core components of Karami’s framework. Co-design is an emerging methodological approach used to develop models of care. It can be used to formally engage older adults, families, and professionals to operationalize core components of Karami’s framework with the goal of improving health service delivery for our aging population.

Keywords

References

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History

  • Received Date: 31 October 2025
  • Revised Date: 07 April 2026
  • Accepted Date: 08 April 2026
  • First Published Date: 15 April 2026
  • Published Date: 01 December 2026

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