Adult Day Care: Non-residential day program that allows for clinical monitoring of chronic medical conditions, medication management, assistance with ADLs, meals, and group interaction. Participants are commonly patients with dementia who require supervision while their primary caregivers are at work/need respite. This model is often used as an alternative to either in-home care or skilled nursing home care, at a fraction of the cost. These programs require a family member or caregiver to assist the individual at home.

Adult Foster Care: Program that provides room, board, and supervision/ basic assistance in ADLS by a paid care provider who typically also lives in the home. Participants are typically frail elderly adults that are unable to live independently, require a minimal level of supervision and ADL assistance, desire a more home-like environment and do not require skilled nursing services. (Regulations for adult foster care vary state to state. Typically patients with dementia are excluded. Please refer to individual states for details. )

Assisted Living: Home-like living environment that provides care services to its residents. Services available vary greatly regionally and nationally. Services can include assistance in ADLs/IADLs, social activities, meals, and transportation. Participants are commonly people who are no longer safe to live fully independently, but do not yet require the degree of nursing care that would make them eligible for a nursing home. Residents need to be able to provide some level of their own care independently to be deemed safe for assisted living.

PEARL: Assisted living facilities are not covered by Medicare.

Continuing-Care Retirement Communities: Also called “life-care communities”; “step-up” model of care in which participants typically pay an entry fee in addition to monthly fees to join the care community. Care levels available range from independent living through assisted living to nursing home level of care. As the individual requires more assistance, they transition into the next level of care. Initial participants are generally healthy and financially independent.

Geriatric Resources for Assessment and Care of Elders (GRACE): Home-based primary care model that that provides comprehensive geriatric assessment. The core team consists of the patient, a nurse practitioner, and a social worker who partner with the patient’s primary care provider (PCP) and an interdisciplinary team to develop an individualized care plan with special focus on managing common geriatric conditions. Participants are typically low income frail elderly adults.

Greenhouse Project Homes: Living environment that provides nursing home level care (RN on site) to typically 10-12 individuals. Goal is to form a community in which all residents have an active role. Participants typically qualify for nursing home level of care. http://thegreenhouseproject.org/

Group Homes: Apartment or home in which two or more unrelated people live together. Participants typically share common living spaces but have their own bedroom. Level of care provided varies but participants typically have to be independent in ADLs. RNs are not on site. Residents are more functional than assisted living participants.

Home Care: Please see Geriatric Fast Fact #025

Home Hospital: Intensive level of home care provided by visiting RNs and MDs for a time limited management of an acute illness (ex. CHF exacerbation, cellulitis). Participants typically meet requirements for an inpatient hospitalization but are instead managed in their home living environment.

Nursing Home: Living environment that provides room and board, assistance with ADLs, medication management, and recreational activities. RN available on site 24/7. More than half the residents require supervision/assistance in all five ADLs. PEARL: Medicare reimbursement is limited to short term acute rehab stays in nursing homes. Long stay care is not Medicare reimbursable.

Outpatient Consultation: Outpatient consultative clinical care model in which typically a geriatrician-led team provides a comprehensive geriatric assessment and develops a care plan. Care recommendations are then provided to the patient and their primary care provider. Participants tend to be community dwelling adults referred by their primary care providers or caregivers.

Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE): Community based interdisciplinary team provides all outpatient, inpatient, and long-term medical care including medications and home nursing. Participants are typically frail community dwelling adults older than 55 who meet state requirements for nursing home level of care and low income and medicare eligible. People have to be Medicare eligile but they can private pay the Medicaid portion or have a cost share for part of the Medicaid portion. PACE utilizes many of the programs listed (e.g., adult day care, assisted living, group homes, home care, nursing home).

Senior Health Clinic: Primary care clinic that specializes in older adults that utilizes a multidisciplinary team to provide comprehensive geriatric assessment and management. Care team members help coordinate care throughout the outpatient and inpatient settings. Participants are community dwelling older adults.