Examined three-way relationships among patient characteristics, type of care (admission to nursing home or community setting), and 6-month outcomes of 352 long-term care patients. Found that patient characteristics influenced type of care received and that substantial portions of variance in outcomes were attributable to initial differences among…

Fifty-two nursing home residents received either a life review or a friendly visit and took part in repeated testings to determine lasting effects of the life review. Results showed a trend toward continued and by year three significant improvement over time in those who received the life review on measures of depression, life satisfaction, and…

College students (n=131) interviewed residents of 96 long-term care facilities. Students perceived nursing homes more negatively than other facilities. Residential care was viewed more positively by those with personal experience of elder care and those whose interviewees were satisfied with their lives or mentally alert. (SK)

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare a variety of resident and staff outcomes across two types of staffing patterns, permanent and rotating assignment, and work shift. Although studies have examined these staffing patterns as part of multicomponent intervention packages, few studies have examined the isolated effects of staffing…

Restorative care attempts to break the cycle of dependency and functional decline in nursing homes by addressing individual resident needs. The Restorative Care Education and Training (RCET) Program consists of a five-week workshop and resource manual for both supervisory and direct care staff. This paper describes the RCET approach and presents…

For all the baby boomers who've embraced and adopted healthier lifestyles, including proper diet and exercise, there may be an even more compelling reason. If you get sick or become hospitalized, you may not have the critically needed services of a well-trained nurse. It's been widely reported that there is a nursing shortage in the United States,…

Purpose: This study identifies the relative importance of reasons for institutionalization endorsed by caregivers of patients with dementia; examines the relationship between caregivers' reasons for institutionalization and indicators of caregiver and patient physical and emotional functioning measured in the prior year; and compares, on these…

Purpose: This study examines whether the relationship between making familial wealth transfers and becoming a Medicaid recipient sheds light on the current debate about Medicaid estate planning, whereby some elders transfer their assets to their families to qualify for Medicaid. Design and Methods: Using the Health and Retirement Study, we tracked…

Purpose: This study reviews staffing standards from the 50 states and the District of Columbia to determine if these standards are related to nursing home staffing levels. Design and Methods: Rules and regulations for states' nursing home staffing standards were obtained for the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Nurse staffing data were…

Purpose: We estimate the independent contribution of crime victimization to nursing home placement in a cohort of older adults who were community dwelling at baseline. Design and Methods: The data come from an observational cohort study of 2,321 community-residing older adults who were members of the New Haven Established Populations for…

The decision to move a family member with dementia to a nursing home is a difficult experience for caregivers. Complex psychosocial factors are involved and knowledge of predictive factors alone is insufficient. Using grounded theory, this study explores the decision-making process with regards to institutionalization, from the perspective of…

This document describes a volunteer work project designed for nursing home and day-care center persons with minimal physical skills. Potential users of the project are cautioned to plan carefully for the host location where the project will be conducted, as the location must be easily accessible to older adults who may be handicapped and who may…

This paper explains how commonality analysis (CA) can be conducted using a specific Statistical Analysis System (SAS) procedure and some simple computations. CA is used in educational and social science research to partition the variance of a dependent variable into its constituent predicted parts. CA determines the proportion of explained…

This report concerns the Health Care Financing Administration's (HCFA) contracting with Utilization and Quality Control Peer Review Organizations (PROs) as a means of monitoring the medical necessity and quality of in-hospital care provided to Medicare beneficiaries. Findings from a HCFA survey of PROs in California, Florida, and Georgia are used…

Family caregivers may face ethical dilemmas when deciding whether a parent or spouse should enter a nursing home. There is considerable evidence that decisions about institutionalization are usually stressful and difficult for family members. This study obtained qualitative and quantitative data from two studies conducted at the Margaret Blenkner…