Adult day care centers, also known as adult day services, have been providing a form of respite for caregivers for more than twenty years. In 1978, there were only 300 centers nationwide. By the 1980s there were 2,100 centers and today there are about 4,000 centers nationwide. The jump in number is to keep pace with the mushrooming demand for home and community based services. This growth also is due in part to new funding sources such as Medicaid waiver programs, which support alternatives to institutional long-term care and rehabilitation.
Adult day care centers provide a break (respite) to the caregiver while providing health services, therapeutic services, and social activities for people with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia, chronic illnesses, traumatic brain injuries, developmental disabilities and other problems that increase their care needs. Some adult day care centers are dementia specific, providing services exclusively to that population. Other centers serve the broader population.
One difference between traditional adult respite, both group and in-home care, and adult day care is that adult day centers not only provide respite to family caregivers but also therapeutic care for cognitively and physically impaired older adults.
Benefits of Adult Day Care
Adult day care allows caregivers to continue working outside the home, receive help with the physical care of a loved one, avoid the guilt of placing a loved one in institutional care, and have respite from what can be a “24/7” responsibility.
The care receiver can also benefit from adult day care. He or she is able to remain at home with family but does not require 24-hour care from the primary caregiver. Adult day care participants also have an opportunity to interact socially with peers, share in stimulating activities, receive physical or speech therapy if needed, and receive assistance with the activities of daily living with dignity.
A day at an adult day care center could include: supervised care; small group and individual activities such as reminiscence, sensory stimulation, music, art, and intergenerational activities; nutritious meals; transportation; case management; recreation and exercise; nursing care; education; family counseling; assistance with activities of daily living; and occupational, speech, and physical therapies. These services are customized to each participant’s needs.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding the care an elderly loved one is receiving in a nursing home or other type of elder care facility, call Berman & Riedel, LLP today at (858) 350-8855. Our staff will happily provide you and your family with an initial free consultation to discuss with you the rights you may have and damages you may be entitled to under California and federal law. For additional information about the firm, visit www.preventelderabuse.com.
