Changes in formal and informal care giving in Denmark

Along with other Nordic countries, Denmark is often portrayed as belonging to the ‘caring states’ of the Northern region, having extensive, generous and public care systems for the provision of long term care for older people. This article investigates how that situates care work, formal as well as informal, and how changes in care policy affect both provisions of care. We find that there is continued pressure on formal care work, with deteriorating working conditions but that the increasing demand for labour may affect the value of formal care work. Informal care work continues to be somewhat neglected, although becoming more important as formal care is increasingly targeted at the frailest among the old.