Background information about dementia and home care services
Estonia gained independence in 1918 and again in 1991 after over
40 years’ occupation by the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
(USSR). From 1991 to 2000, new principles of social security
were formed and new insurance systems were established. In
Estonia, there is a high percentage of elderly people,
particularly elderly single women living alone. Since the early
1990s, the Estonian health care system has seen a number of
reforms, mainly involving the reorganisation of the public
funding system and a reduction in the number of hospitals and
beds, whilst at the same time trying to make a more efficient
use of funds. Consequently, the Estonian healthcare system has
changed from a centralized state-controlled system to a
decentralised one and from a state-funded system to one funded
mainly through health insurance contributions. However, the
health system had difficulty coping with the extent of
decentralisation and consequently in the late 1990s, th