The Long Term Care System

Nursing homes and assisted facility homes are all examples of long term care facilities. These facilities are usually targeting individuals who are of geriatric age or need around the clock care (mental health and physical health). The residents in these communities have access to individually-tailored levels of individual or group-centered activities, programs, and assistance whether it is with home or personal care. Long term care facilities are generally for those who are unable to manage independently in the community. Specific types of long-term services include nursing homes, hospice care, home health agencies, and residential care facilities. The goal of these programs is to make sure each patient has a safe and comforting environment

Long-term care assists individuals who cannot adequately perform their routine activities of daily living. These activities include dressing, bathing, walking, meal preparation, and taking medications ( Batnitzk,A.,Hayes,D.,& Vinall,P.E. 2014,(c. 5.1). These services are typically for clients over the age of 65 years old and is used to promote independence and security for those who cannot take care of their needs due to illness or debility (c.6.1). The type of provider will depend on the type of care a client needs. For instance, some elderly people that need help with food preparations or everyday activities will request to stay at home and have a family member take care of them. This is one way that long-term care is rendered but is unpaid. Another way is through nursing facilities, skilled nursing facilities and assisted living that will handle more complex or full-time

Long-term care can be defined as a broad set of paid and unpaid services for people who are mentally or physically disabled, or whose chronic illness places them in need of medical or personal assistance for long periods of time. “It is estimated that there are more than twelve million Americans of all ages whose mix of serious disability and chronic illness places them at the high risk for functional decline, hospitalization, or nursing home placement.” (Benjamin) Several different populations require long-term care services, and the needs of these populations vary. In addition to the elderly, many of the long-term care users are younger persons with physical disabilities; persons with developmental disabilities; and persons with chronic

Taking care of the individuals that are getting older takes many different needs. Most of these needs cannot be given from the help of a family. This causes the need of having to put your love one into a home and causing for the worry of how they will be treated. It is important for the family and also the soon to be client to feel at home in their new environment. This has been an issue with the care being provided for each individual, which has lead to the need of making sure individuals have their own health care plan.

Hello Dr. Ullom, majority of the long term care facilities are under staffed. There is usually one registered nurse in charge to manage a 240 bed facility, with LPN's  and nursing assistance. I feel that these patients would benefit from having one RN to every six -eight patients with a nursing assistance. Not only would this benefit the patient but the nurse as well. Patient are placed in long term care facility with a certain problem, but ends up with additional condition such as UTI, MRSA, pressure ulcers, and etc. These issues are related to poor care they receive because of unstaffing. I'm not placing blame on the LPN or nursing assistance, but with a RN and low nurse to patient ratio, they will receive better care.

The Continuum of Care is the variety of health care services provided to numerous individuals who are in need of it. All the various Long Term Care providers work as a unit, helping an individual handle their disability with various health care amenities accessible. The Continuum of Care, as stated in Long Term Care: Managing Across the Continuum (2010), is “comprehensive, integrated, and client-oriented”. All the services offered should be client-based and cater to the client’s needs and suitable care. The client’s should be able to obtain services when it is needed from the provider, making it comprehensive. All the different Long Term Care providers should be interconnected between one another, because their goal is all the same. Their goal is to care for the client’s needs. The Continuum of Care consists of: nursing facilities, sub acute care, assisted living, residential care, elderly housing, and a variety of community-based services (Pratt, 2010). All these different providers work together to care for the individuals within the health care industry, creating the continuum and making it integrated. The continuum has many positive attributes, along with many barriers. The range of barriers are: poor transitions from Long Term Care setting to setting for the clients, the continuum is reimbursement-driven, it is fragmented and uncoordinated, it is under staffed with medical professionals, and there are major language and literacy problems.

The long-term care services delivery system in the United States has changed substantially over the last 30 years . There are approximately 17,000 elderly and disabled persons are receiving care in nursing homes (NNHS, 2004). The number of people using nursing facilities, alternative residential care places, or home care services are projected to increase from 15 million in 2000 to 27 million in 2050 (HHS, 2003). Identifying the best nursing home that would fit their needs can be difficult and time-consuming. Although nursing homes usually provide certain basic care that patients need, some nursing home facilities provides special care for certain types of individuals with special needs. For example, people with dementia, AIDS, ventilator-dependents,

Mr. Henry and his wife need medical care coordinated throughout the health care system to receive proper treatment and prevent health complications, encouraging their independence by remaining in the same setting. Marek and Rantz highlight that by providing care coordination and health care services for older adults residing in specially designed senior apartments, older adults will not have to move from one level of care delivery to another as their health care needs increase; and they will have the opportunity to “age in place” (Marek & Rantz, 2000). Care coordination starts with a comprehensive assessment of each of Henry and Ertha individual needs for health and social support, and by developing an individualized plan of care for each of them. “Patients should be evaluated, and care plans should be designed and implemented according to the individual needs of each patient (American Geriatrics Society, 2012, p. 1966). As Mr. Henry and his wife health care needs increase, they can receive periodical physical examinations to monitor their underlying health problems, and for early detection of complications remaining in their apartment. This will prevent negative outcomes associated with relocation, and medications and treatment noncompliance.

In many circumstances, people may move out of long-term care. Those recovering illness or injury may regain independence after they are well. Some may not every be able to live a life without long-term care again. It is noted that 40 percent of people over 65 will need two or more years of long-term care with half of those needing care for more than five years (Grote, 2011). Unfortunately, with today’s aging population, the numbers in the long-term care are most likely to keep increasing instead of transitioning people out. Of the 12 million people who need LTC, 6.6 million are age 65 or older and are likely to be Medicare beneficiaries and entitled to the LTC coverage that Medicare provides (Barton, 2006). That said, not everyone who

More and more people will need care in old age, and if they are disabled. Millions of Americans suffer from a chronic illness, or some kind of disability, and many of these people will have limits in their daily activities. Some people experience

Long-term care has and is continuing to become an important part of the continuum of care. Years ago Long-term care (LTC) was considered only to be for the elderly, but as time passes it is for anybody and everybody who needs it. Barton (2006) stated, “Regardless of the length of time (i.e., from weeks to years), long-term care is an array of services provided in a range of settings to individuals who have lost some capacity for independence due to injury, chronic illness, or condition” (p. 367). According to Barton (2006), it states that the services long-term care provides help the consumer with basic needs and shows the individuals how to do daily living activities, along with therapy and being able to

The continuum of institutional long-term care is for patients whose needs are not adequately met in a more community-based setting. It is for individuals who need more dependency. There are two ends of the continuum of institutional long-term care spectrum. On the one end there are the individuals that may only need basic personal or custodial care (Shi & Singh, 2015, p. 399). An example of personal and custodial care can include help with walking, bladder training, or just helping with bathing. On the other end there are the individuals that may need more round the clock care with nursing or specialized services along with the basic needs (Shi & Singh, 2015, p. 399).

For seniors who choose to remain in their own residence despite their pain, in home care often makes a significant difference by allowing them to maintain their freedom, independence, and high quality of life. Some of the most popular services include light housekeeping, laundry, and transportation services since many seniors with chronic pain are not longer able to drive. Additionally, medication management support is important because of the vast numbers and varieties of medications most seniors with chronic pain

Health care is a fascinating industry. So many types of care are included within the industry. Health care can be very broad or very specific. Health care is also comprised of different types of health care. One specific sector is long-term health care. Long-term care plays a huge role in the health care continuum. This paper will define long-term care and a continuum as well as discuss the services provided and how these services fit in the continuum of care, the resources that go along with long-term care and how it contributes to overall health care resources, and how long-term care services

Long-term care also depends on a persons needs and is provided in different places by different caregivers. Most long-term care is provided at home by unpaid family members and friends as well as facilities such as nursing home and in the community, for example in an adult day care center. The most common type of long-term care is personal care assistance that is provided in the comfort of the family’s home. Clients would receive help with instrumental activities of daily living. Basic ADLs consist of self-care task that include, but are not limited to showering, bathing, personal hygiene, grooming, toileting, ambulating and transferring. IADLs are not necessary for fundamental functioning, but they let an individual live independently in their community. This includes taking prescribed medications, cleaning, grocery shopping, meal preparation and moving within the community. Because chronic illness occurs most often in seniors, long-term care facilities have different programs that are oriented to necessitate not only personal services but also regular nursing care and intermittent medical attention. However, the type of care provided varies extensively. Some facilities retain and admit only residents who