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Types of Elder Care

There are two main types of elder care - skilled care which provides medical services that require licensed personnel, and custodial care which helps with daily living activities. Care can be provided at home, adult day care centers, or residential facilities like nursing homes or assisted living. Assisted living and memory care facilities offer daily support and activities, but memory care is specialized for dementia patients. Home care provides non-medical assistance at home while home health care involves medical procedures. Adult day care can involve social activities or medical services. Palliative care focuses on comfort while hospice specifically treats terminal illnesses. Care managers help families plan long-term care while public and private options exist. Residential facilities range from independent living to skilled nursing homes.

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89 views3 pages

Types of Elder Care

There are two main types of elder care - skilled care which provides medical services that require licensed personnel, and custodial care which helps with daily living activities. Care can be provided at home, adult day care centers, or residential facilities like nursing homes or assisted living. Assisted living and memory care facilities offer daily support and activities, but memory care is specialized for dementia patients. Home care provides non-medical assistance at home while home health care involves medical procedures. Adult day care can involve social activities or medical services. Palliative care focuses on comfort while hospice specifically treats terminal illnesses. Care managers help families plan long-term care while public and private options exist. Residential facilities range from independent living to skilled nursing homes.

Uploaded by

Sheila Mae Onato
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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TYPES OF ELDER CARE

Skilled Care vs. Custodial Care


Regardless of the location in which assistance is provided, at the highest level there are two types of
care, skilled care (medical care) and custodial care (non-medical care). Skilled care describes
medical services, such as physical therapy, catheter care, and administering medications via IV, that
can be provided only by skilled or licensed medical personnel. Custodial care (also called non-
skilled care) helps with activities of daily living (ADLs), such as bathing, dressing, and eating, and
sometimes with instrumental activities of daily Living (IADLs), like light housecleaning, laundry,
and preparing meals. Custodial care is typical for seniors with Alzheimer’s or dementia, as well as
for frail, elderly adults. Both skilled and custodial care can be provided at home, in adult day care,
or in a residential care setting, such as a nursing home, an assisted living community, or an adult
foster care home.

Assisted Living vs. Memory Care


Both assisted living and memory care are residences that offer 24-hr supervision and personal care
assistance, as well as meals, social activities, and other amenities. However, memory care is
intended only for persons with dementia, usually related to Alzheimer’s Disease, but also dementia
from Parkinson’s, Huntington’s, and most other forms of dementia. There are several differences
between assisted living and memory care. Typically, the staff-to-resident ratio in memory care is
lower, allowing residents a higher level of care. In addition, the staff is specifically trained to handle
the cognitive, behavioral, emotional, and physical needs and issues associated with dementia.
Security in memory care is increased and external access is restricted to prevent wandering.
Different types of recreational activities are organized with fewer offsite outings. Consequently,
memory care is more expensive than assisted living by approximately 25%.

Home Care vs. Home Health Care


These terms, “home care” and “home health care”, are sometimes used interchangeably, but there is
an important distinction. While both types of care are provided in the individual’s home, home care
generally means custodial or unskilled care is being provided. For example, assistance is provided
with bathing and dressing the individual, doing the laundry, cooking, and accompanying the care
recipient to doctors’ appointments or on other errands. One may also hear this type of care referred
to as personal care or attendant care, although those terms are not exclusively for care provided in
the home.

Home health care refers to a higher level of care, which requires medical training. This includes
procedures such as checking the individual’s vitals and respiration, and assisting with braces,
artificial limbs, and other medical equipment, such as ventilators. To be clear, it is not unusual for
home health care providers to also provide custodial care during their home visits.

Adult Day Social Care vs. Adult Day Health Care


The term “adult day care” is used interchangeably and can refer to adult day social care or adult day
medical care. Adult day social care provides seniors with supervision and care in a structured
setting during daytime hours, usually only on weekdays. This type of care is often used to allow
informal (unpaid) family caregivers to go to work or is utilized as respite care (temporary care that
allows primary caregivers a break from their caregiving responsibilities). A variety of social /
recreational activities, meals, personal care assistance, and some therapies are offered. In addition,
some adult day care centers specialize in dementia care. With this type of care, extra safety
measures have been taken to prevent wandering and the staff specializes in caring for persons with
Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.

Adult day health care typically provides everything adult day social care does, but also offers
medical services equivalent, or almost equivalent, to those found in nursing homes.

Virtual Companion Care


Virtual companion care is a way of providing home care using Internet technologies. Elderly
persons living at home alone are provided with a tablet computer through which their safety and
mood can be monitored, medication reminders provided, and most importantly, they can interact
with others, reducing feelings of loneliness and isolation. Although hands-on care is not provided,
virtual companion care holds great promise for reducing the cost of care and improving the lives of
elderly persons living at home alone.

Palliative Care vs. Hospice Care


Palliative care is a type of care that focuses on relieving patients of their pain and suffering, instead
of medical care, which has the objective of curing or treating the underlying conditions. Hospice
care, on the other hand, is an encompassing approach to treating terminally ill patients in the last
weeks or months of their lives. While hospice care very often includes palliative care, not all
persons receiving palliative care are in hospice.

Care Management Services: Public and Private Options


Geriatric Care Managers (GCMs) help families create and implement long term care plans for their
loved ones. Stated differently, they provide care management services instead of providing hands-
on care themselves. Typically, this includes an in-person needs assessment, the development and
review of a care plan, and arranging and monitoring care services. Approximately one third of care
managers also offer financial planning for eldercare.

GCMs are also referred to as elder care managers, case managers, and service or care coordinators.
In addition to a certification from the Aging Life Care Association, many are licensed by their
different professional backgrounds, which include social workers, nurses, therapists, and assisted
living or home care professionals.

There are both public and private care managers. Those who work in the public sector are usually
referred to as benefits counselors or case managers, while those who work in the private sector are
called care managers. Medicaid will sometimes provide for care management services under a
HCBS (home and community-based services) Waiver program. Some long-term care insurance
policies include coverage of care management as well.

In addition to the convenience, time-savings, and security they provide, care managers can save
families money because their needs assessments align an individual’s present condition with only
those services that are necessary at that time.
Residential Care Comparison Table
There are four categories of residential care communities, and each is referred to by many different
names.

1) Independent Living / Senior Living – homes within a complex that offers


transportation, security, and recreational activities, but no health care services. There is
sometimes a strict minimum age requirement.

2) Assisted Living – residences provide help with activities of daily living, including basic
health services, recreational and social activities, but not skilled nursing care.

3) Skilled Nursing Homes – residences with 24/7 care by licensed health professionals,
including all housekeeping, medical, and social needs.

4) Continuing Care Retirement Communities – residences that provide a continuum of


care from independent living to assisted living to memory care to skilled nursing. These
communities are designed to enable seniors with progressively declining health to remain
in a single residential location or give healthy seniors the peace of mind that all their future
needs are covered.

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