Primary obstacles to meal of wheels were logistical and regulatory. You have large numbers of people who are living by themselves at an advanced age and are in need, and that presents a number of challenges.

When looking into just one neighborhood, we found that a single center was able tto deliver 150 meals in 1 hour using 2 people on bicycles. In the US, that would take 4-5 people in cars. however, to scale that up would require significant investment in equipment and people.

Operationally, then you also have the regulations surrounding food delivery, the risks of food quality, and the need to develop a menu of items that could be chosen.

Service wise, you then need to think about training staff. Staff who are going to be delivering meals are the window into many of these homes, and would need to be trained to look out for certain things -apartment condition, physical health, mental awareness, etc..

A lot of things to consider.

R

Nice. I didn’t get a chance to sift through those links but I definitely will. As for the ‘meals on wheels’ what kind of obstacles are there?

-Ed

Going to have to point you back to the posts that I have linked to.. In each of those, I think a fair amount of issues/ solutions have been highlighted.

However, a few interesting things that I have seen lately are related to lifestyle services and quality of life for those who are over 60.. and those who have limited mobility. several years back I worked with one of the districts on a “Meals on Wheels” feasibility, and while the program requirements were huge, it is interesting to see how it is progressing.. and how other programs are able to dovetail.

R

Honestly, this is the one flaw (albeit a major one) in the system.. 2nd and 3rd children.

When speaking about the data collection methods, it was pretty clear that the same people who were responsible for counting kids via the census were also the same people who were supposed to be limiting families to 1 child.

So, you are right in that it could very well be a different ratio, and were you to suggest that the total population were actually higher… it is a case that others would certainly back you on

R

This one could be disputed, as there is a very large unknown female population in the county side without hukou, that have been tucked away. One can still live in China without a hukou or a shenfenzheng especially outside the big cities.