As part of the project “Circles of Support for Older Persons”, implemented by the organisation Krugovi – Centre for Education, Counselling and Humanitarian Work, a roundtable titled “Urgent Action for Dignified Ageing and Palliative Care” was held on 25 February 2025, with participation from Deputy Ombudswoman Tatjana Vlašić.
In the first panel, which focused on lifetime and lifelong support agreements, Deputy Ombudswoman Vlašić emphasised that abuses of these contracts are closely linked to the poverty experienced by many older persons, as well as to the limited availability of in-home support services and insufficient capacities in long-term care institutions—issues the Ombudswoman, Tena Šimonović Einwalter, has been warning about for years.
Deputy Vlašić also pointed to positive developments, some of which were prompted by the Ombudswoman’s recommendations. These include the introduction of protective mechanisms aimed at preventing the abuse of such contracts, particularly lifelong support agreements, in which ownership of assets is transferred immediately upon signing—something many older persons are unaware of, often resulting in loss of property and lack of the promised care.
For example, over the past year, the number of contracts a single provider can enter into was limited, the naming of contracts was amended to clearly indicate when asset transfer occurs, and a Register of Support Contracts was established.
Moreover, the total number of these contracts declined over the past year—by 15% in the case of lifetime support contracts (where the asset transfer occurs after death) and by 20% for lifelong support contracts (with immediate asset transfer)—reversing the previous upward trend in the number of such agreements.
Deputy Vlašić noted that these are indeed steps in the right direction, but that further improvements are necessary to enhance the protection of older persons’ rights in this context. These could include, for instance, improving public awareness, particularly among older persons, about the legal and practical implications of these agreements, and prohibiting such contracts from being concluded with legal entities providing social care services, as well as individuals employed in the social care sector.
She also stressed the importance of effective implementation of recent amendments to the Civil Procedure Act, which designate proceedings on the termination of these contracts as urgent. In practice, however, such court proceedings still last for several years—an issue of great concern for older persons relying on the fulfilment of these agreements.
In the second panel, which focused on palliative care, Deputy Vlašić highlighted that, according to hospital data, there is an increasing trend in cancer and other chronic illnesses, which has led to growing demand for palliative care. Unfortunately, however, the development of palliative care in Croatia remains very slow.
According to the Croatian Health Insurance Fund (HZZO), the number of primary care palliative teams has not increased since last year. A significant issue is the shortage of doctors in mobile palliative teams, as well as professionals from other fields such as social workers, psychologists, spiritual counsellors, and physiatrists—which means no mobile palliative care team currently meets European standards for completeness.
Since the National Programme for the Development of Palliative Care in the Republic of Croatia for the period 2023–2026 has not yet been adopted, Deputy Vlašić underlined the need for its urgent adoption, which is also among the Ombudswoman’s formal recommendations.
She also drew attention to other systemic issues, such as inadequate communication with patients and their families, lack of joint care planning, insufficient monitoring and support, obstacles in exercising the right to home healthcare, poor interdisciplinary collaboration within facilities, and insufficient coordination between health and social care systems, along with a general lack of training among professionals, and a shortage of in-patient care for individuals requiring specialised support.
In addition to Deputy Vlašić, the first panel featured Štefica Salaj from the Croatian Pensioners’ Union, Olga Jelčić from the Croatian Law Centre, and Višnja Fortuna from the Pensioners’ Association of Croatia. The panel was moderated by Petra Klasić from the organisation Krugovi. The second panel included Blaženka Eror Matić from the association La Verna, Nada Tomasović Mrčela from the Andrija Štampar Teaching Institute of Public Health, as well as Ivana Đerek Dubravčić and Antonija Bobić Lazić from the City of Zagreb. The discussion was moderated by Gordana Šimunković from the University of Rijeka, Faculty of Medicine.
The roundtable was organised as part of the Impact4Values programme. Along with Krugovi – Centre for Education, Counselling and Humanitarian Work, the Croatian Law Centre, the Croatian Youth Network, and the Croatian Pensioners’ Union also participated in the project. The project aims to educate professionals, service users, and the general public on the importance of dignified ageing, safe contracting of lifetime and lifelong support agreements, and the provision of accessible and adequate palliative care to protect older persons and those in vulnerable situations during the most difficult moments of life.