Exploration of Theoretical Dimensions and Practical Pathways for Medical Social Work Intervention in Elderly Care Services for The Advanced-Aged Under the Background of Active Aging

With the accelerating process of population aging, the demand for elderly care services has surged dramatically. Proactively addressing population aging and promoting the high-quality development of aging-related initiatives and industries are not only inherent requirements for building a socialist active aging society with Chinese characteristics in the new era but also a crucial driver for comprehensively optimizing elderly care services in both urban and rural areas. From the perspective of active aging, this study analyzes the theoretical dimensions of medical social work intervention in elderly care services for the advanced-aged through micro, meso, and macro levels. It elaborates on the practical pathways for such intervention, identifying challenges such as the failure to leverage professional expertise, limited social recognition and authority, ambiguous accountability among stakeholders, and inconsistent institutional norms. Based on these findings, the study argues that the key to effective medical social work intervention in elderly care services for the advanced-aged lies in clarifying training objectives for medical social workers, building branded services to enhance their visibility, defining clear responsibility entities, and exploring standardized institutional development.