Use of adult day services and home health care services by older adults: a comparative analysis

Abstract

This study compares adult day services (ADS) and home health care (HHC) users on the indicators of personal characteristics, physical health, mental health and social network contacts. Analysis includes all 62 reported ADS users and a random sample of 91 HHC users from the Longitudinal Study of Aging. Results indicate that ADS users are younger, have greater cognitive impairment, need more supervisory assistance with activities of daily living (ADLs), and have more social contacts than HHC users. The findings also underscore the importance of emphasizing the functional and cognitive limitations in differentiating home- and community-based services. Instead of exclusively focusing on physical needs, authors suggest strategies that ensure integrated care models to address physical, mental and social needs of elders in both settings.