Social care reform: what can we learn from international models?

Over the last 20 years, successive proposals for social care reform in England have failed to gain political traction or public support and our social care system is widely thought to be in a state of crisis.

In contrast, and in the face of some stark demographic and social trends, Japan and Germany recognised the need for reform in the 1990s and have successfully implemented new systems of funding and delivery. While neither system is perfect, they are based on a core set of principles. Natasha reflects on how transferable those principles might be to our own context and what lessons we might be able to learn from both systems’ imperfections as well as successes.

Natasha Curry joined the Nuffield Trust in 2011 as a Senior Fellow in Health Policy. Prior to joining the Trust, she worked as a Fellow in Health Policy at the King’s Fund. Natasha has an interest in international health and social care systems and is leading the Trust’s work on social care. She has researched and published on a range of topics, including clinical commissioning, integrated care, primary care, long-term conditions and NHS reform.

Previously, Natasha has worked as a consultant in health at Matrix Research & Consultancy Ltd and as the Evaluations Officer at the Chinese National Health Living Centre, prior to which she spent time living and working in China.