The Legal Structure of Personal Social Services in Regional Spaces

A Discussion in the Context of Japanese Community Care Policy

Abstract

In an aging society, a pressing issue in Japan today is ensuring comprehensive care for elderly populations in local communities. A key concern here is going beyond the mere receipt of personal social services on a one-to-one basis between provider and user and considering instead how to build a community care system that functions as a service network for the region as a whole. Second, as the use of personal social services shifts from administrative measures to their being provided on a contract basis, and then expanding to cover the region as a whole, the question becomes how to guarantee the right to use these personal social services.

This paper examines the issue from the above viewpoint and analyzes the mechanisms and rights of personal social services in Japan’s local communities. First, the key concepts behind Japan’s community care policy over the years are summarized and the main schemes for use of such services in each chronological era are identified. Subsequently the three discrete types of services are focused on: (1) social work, which involves local integration; (2) the use of services, which involves participation; and (3) the creation of services, which involves development. Lastly the paper analyzes the ways that users’ rights are protected in these mechanisms.