2. What Are Some Examples Of Preventive Long-term Care Services?

Long-term intendance involves a variety of services designed to see a person's wellness or personal care needs during a short or long period of time. These services aid people live equally independently and safely as possible when they can no longer perform everyday activities on their ain.

Long-term care is provided in different places past unlike caregivers, depending on a person's needs. Most long-term intendance is provided at dwelling by unpaid family members and friends. Information technology can likewise exist given in a facility such as a nursing home or in the community, for example, in an adult day care center.

The most common type of long-term intendance is personal intendance—aid with everyday activities, also called "activities of daily living." These activities include bathing, dressing, preparation, using the toilet, eating, and moving effectually—for example, getting out of bed and into a chair.

Long-term care also includes community services such as meals, developed mean solar day care, and transportation services. These services may be provided free or for a fee.

People ofttimes need long-term intendance when they take a serious, ongoing wellness condition or inability. The need for long-term intendance can arise of a sudden, such as subsequently a heart set on or stroke. Most often, however, it develops gradually, as people get older and frailer or equally an illness or disability gets worse.

What Are the Different Types of Home-Based Long-Term Care Services?

Dwelling-based long-term intendance includes health, personal, and support services to help people stay at abode and live as independently as possible. Most long-term care is provided either in the habitation of the person receiving services or at a family unit member'southward home. In-domicile services may exist short-term—for someone who is recovering from an operation, for example—or long-term, for people who need ongoing help.

Near home-based services involve personal care, such as help with bathing, dressing, and taking medications, and supervision to make sure a person is rubber. Unpaid family members, partners, friends, and neighbors provide about of this blazon of care.

Are you a long-altitude caregiver? Come across When Information technology's Time to Leave Domicile.

Home-based long-term intendance services can likewise exist provided by paid caregivers, including caregivers found informally, and healthcare professionals such as nurses, domicile health intendance aides, therapists, and homemakers, who are hired through home wellness care agencies. These services include: home health care, homemaker services, friendly visitor/companion services, and emergency response systems.

Home Health Intendance

Home wellness intendance involves part-time medical services ordered by a dr. for a specific condition. These services may include nursing care to assistance a person recover from surgery, an blow, or illness. Domicile wellness care may also include physical, occupational, or speech therapy and temporary habitation health adjutant services. These services are provided by domicile wellness intendance agencies approved by Medicare, a government insurance program for people over age 65.

Homemaker and Personal Care Services

Home health agencies offering homemaker and personal care services that can be purchased without a medico'due south gild. Homemaker services include aid with meal grooming and household chores. Personal care includes help with bathing and dressing. Agencies practise non have to be approved by Medicare to provide these kinds of services.

Find a Medicare-certified home wellness agency in your area.

Friendly Visitor and Senior Companion Services

Friendly company/companion services are usually staffed by volunteers who regularly pay short visits (less than 2 hours) to someone who is fragile or living alone. You tin can also buy these services from home health agencies.

Senior Transportation Services

Transportation services aid people go to and from medical appointments, shopping centers, and other places in the community. Some senior housing complexes and customs groups offer transportation services. Many public transit agencies have services for people with disabilities. Some services are costless. Others charge a fee.

Learn more nigh transportation services from Eldercare Locator.

Emergency Medical Alert Systems

Emergency response systems automatically respond to medical and other emergencies via electronic monitors. The user wears a necklace or bracelet with a push button to button in an emergency. Pushing the button summons emergency help to the home. This type of service is particularly useful for people who live alone or are at risk of falling. A monthly fee is charged.

Long-Term Intendance Planning

Yous can never know for sure if you will need long-term care. Maybe you will never demand information technology. Just an unexpected accident, illness, or injury can change your needs, sometimes of a sudden. The best fourth dimension to call back virtually long-term care is earlier you lot need it.

Planning for the possibility of long-term intendance gives you time to learn virtually services in your community and what they cost. It also allows y'all to make important decisions while y'all are nonetheless able.

People with Alzheimer's disease or other cognitive damage should begin planning for long-term intendance as soon as possible.

Learn more about advance care planning.

Aging in place infographic icon- click through for full text — Read and share this infographic to get tips on how to make home safe and accessible while aging in place.

Making Decisions Nigh Long-Term Care

Begin by thinking well-nigh what would happen if you became seriously ill or disabled. Talk with your family, friends, and lawyer about who would provide care if you needed assistance for a long fourth dimension. Read virtually how to prepare healthcare advance directives.

Y'all might delay or forestall the demand for long-term care by staying healthy and independent. Talk to your doctor about your medical and family history and lifestyle. He or she may propose actions you can take to improve your health.

Healthy eating, regular physical activity, non smoking, and express drinking of alcohol can help you lot stay healthy. Then tin an active social life, a safe habitation, and regular wellness intendance.

Making Housing Decisions: Crumbling in Place

In thinking about long-term care, information technology is important to consider where y'all volition live as yous historic period and how your place of residence can best support your needs if you can no longer fully intendance for yourself.

Nigh people adopt to stay in their own abode for as long as possible. Learn almost services, products, and resources that can assistance older adults stay in their homes.

Making Financial Decisions for Long-Term Care

Long-term care can be expensive. Americans spend billions of dollars a year on various services. How people pay for long-term intendance depends on their financial situation and the kinds of services they use. Oft, they rely on a diverseness of payment sources, including:

Personal funds, including pensions, savings, and income from stocks
Government wellness insurance programs, such as Medicaid (Medicare does not cover long-term care but may cover some costs of curt-term care in a nursing dwelling house subsequently a hospital stay.)
Private financing options, such equally long-term care insurance
Veterans' benefits
Services through the Older Americans Act

To find abode-based services, contact Eldercare Locator at 1-800-677-1116 or visit https://eldercare.acl.gov. You can besides call your local Area Bureau on Aging, Aging and Disability Resource Center, department of human services or aging, or a social service bureau.

Read more than about getting assistance to stay at habitation.

Larn more about long-term care outside of the abode.

Learn more about paying for care.

For More Data About Long-Term Intendance

This content is provided by the NIH National Institute on Aging (NIA). NIA scientists and other experts review this content to ensure it is accurate and upwards to date.

Content reviewed: May 01, 2017