Long may we live! Long may we live!

Nursing homes are a special category within housing for the elderly. They house people with chronic health problems, the majority of whom are pensioners. With the development of gerontology and geriatrics, medical knowledge gradually had an influence on nursing homes. Sick residents in retirement homes were placed in a separate infirmary, leading to the development of distinct nursing departments: 'On the one hand, the nursing home grew out of the retirement home, and on the one hand as a split-off from hospital.' This publication provides information on the origins and development of the nursing home, giving a detailed picture of the distinctions between a retirement home and a nursing home.