e. On the average, ambiance, which is significant psychologically, is superior at the private facilities; however, a patient abuse potential was observed only at some private facilities.
Both staff competency and the level of staffing is gener-ally superior at publicly-supported facilities. Similarly, on the average, both the quality and scope of available therapies is superior at the publicly-supported facilities.
Both publicly-supported and private custodial facilities for the elderly, as groups, possess advantages over the other group. On balance, however, the publicly-supported facilities, as a group, are generally higher rated.
Based upon the results of the research performed for this study, it was concluded that the demand for custodial care for some elderly members of the population in Bermuda will continue to be strong through the first decade of the next century. It was also concluded that it is unlikely that the private sector will be able to satisfy the demand for such services in the context of price, level of service, and service quality for the great majority of the elderly persons in Bermuda who will likely require such services.
It was concluded further, however, that it is not neces-sary for the government of Bermuda to physically provide custo-dial care services and facilities for the elderly. What is necessary for the government of Bermuda to do is to be prepared to fully fund such services, regardless of whether thay are physically provided by private sector organizations or by pub-lic sector organizations.
It is uncertain whether or not private sector organiza-tions will be able to fully meet the physical demand for custo-dial care for the elderly in Bermuda, even if the government assumes the funding responsibility. Therefore, it is recom-mended that additional research performed, the purpose of which would be to assess the need for the government of Bermuda to physically provide and operate a ...