As part of the project “Strengthening the resilience of older persons and persons with disabilities during COVID-19 and future disasters”, on April 19, 2023, the study “Access to long-term care services in North Macedonia” was presented in the premises of the Red Cross of the Republic of North Macedonia. The meeting was opened by the Secretary General of the Red Cross of the Republic of North Macedonia, Dr. Sait Saiti, the Minister of Labuor and Social Policy, Jovanka Trenčevska, the Minister of Health, Dr. Fatmir Medžiti, Nataša Todorović from the Red Cross of Serbia, and Saško Jovanov from the Humanity Association as well as the SeCons development initiative representatives, who developed this study.

In North Macedonia, 25.6% of persons aged 65 and over have a need for long-term care due to difficulties in functioning, while among persons with disabilities aged 18-64, as many as 64% need long-term care due to great difficulties in performing activities of daily life – as some of the research results show. The keynote speakers at this meeting agreed that closer cooperation between the systems of healthcare and social welfare is necessary in order to provide the highest quality help and care to older persons and persons with disabilities.

This study was done according to the same methodology for the entire region, and should be the basis for formulating recommendations on how to increase the capacities of service providers and civil society organizations, how to improve public policies, and how to increase financial contributions. This is the way to ensure better access to long-term care services for older persons and persons with disabilities in regular circumstances, and especially in cases of emergency situations such as the pandemic caused by the COVID-19 virus, as was emphasized at this meeting.

During the visit, a workshop was organized with partners for the purpose of developing an advocacy plan for long-term care. A meeting was also organized with the members of the InkluzivaM network, where the results of the study were presented

The project “Strengthening the resilience of older persons and persons with disabilities during COVID-19 and future disasters” is supported by the European Union, the Austrian Development Agency and the Austrian Red Cross. This project is coordinated by the Red Cross of Serbia, and the partners in North Macedonia are the Red Cross of the Republic of North Macedonia and the association Humanost.

https://www.facebook.com/MediumskaInformativnaAgencija/videos/968779981144367/