Does household help prevent loneliness among the elderly? An evaluation of a policy reform in the Netherlands

Background Household help is a community intervention in the Netherlands. Its primary goal is to provide professional help in doing domestic work. A secondary goal of the intervention is to alleviate loneliness. In 2007, a major health care reform and budget cut changed household help. After the reform alleviating loneliness is no longer an aim of the intervention. In this study we evaluate the effects of the policy change in household help on loneliness among older adults in the Netherlands. Methods We use SHARE data collected during the period 2004–2013 to compare levels of loneliness among... Mehr ...