Abstract:

The five papers in this document were presented at a workshop convened by the Department of Health and Aged Care in Canberra, July 1998, the purpose of which was to examine the current state of knowledge in relation to the hypothesis of 'compression of morbidity'. This term refers to a hypothesis proposed by James F. Fries that as life expectancy increases, there is no increase in the number of years of disability-affected life. The papers, which examine the issue from a range of standpoints, are: Trends in aged care service utilisation: interpretations and implications of compression of morbidity by Anna Howe; International trends in health expectancies: do they provide evidence for expansion or compression of morbidity? by Colin Mathers; The new morbidity picture: substitution versus compression? by John McCallum; Compression of morbidity: evidence in relation to the age of onset of neurological disorders by Helen Creasey; and A social perspective on health and illness in older people by Hal Kendig.