Long Term Care
Continuum of Care- Long-term Care
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 manage their conditions. Today long-term care is serving consumers of all ages in home, community, and institutional settings (Barton, 2006).
Long-term care has contributed to the continuum of care tremendously because it is offering an array of services for consumers in different places and not just focusing on one specific population. In the last few years long-term care has become more of a need for more than 12million people in the United States, and out of these 12 million people, five million of them are nearly disabled (Barton, 2006). Barton (2006) stated, “a significant proportion of people needing long-term care-nearly half –is younger than 65: 40 percent are working age adults and about 3 percent are children younger than age 18” (p. 368). Therefore, long-term care is not just dealing with the medical aspect of being in a home, but is also for daily living such as personal care, meal preparations, housekeeping and chore services, and management of overall care for an individual. As the years go on the need for long-term care will only continue to increase.
The reason that long-term care will increase for need is due to a number of reasons. First, the baby boomer population has a huge impact and according to Barton
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 manage their conditions. Today long-term care is serving consumers of all ages in home, community, and institutional settings (Barton, 2006).
Long-term care has contributed to the continuum of care tremendously because it is offering an array of services for consumers in different places and not just focusing on one specific population. In the last few years long-term care has become more of a need for more than 12million people in the United States, and out of these 12 million people, five million of them are nearly disabled (Barton, 2006). Barton (2006) stated, “a significant proportion of people needing long-term care-nearly half –is younger than 65: 40 percent are working age adults and about 3 percent are children younger than age 18” (p. 368). Therefore, long-term care is not just dealing with the medical aspect of being in a home, but is also for daily living such as personal care, meal preparations, housekeeping and chore services, and management of overall care for an individual. As the years go on the need for long-term care will only continue to increase.
The reason that long-term care will increase for need is due to a number of reasons. First, the baby boomer population has a huge impact and according to Barton
References: Barton, P. L. (2006). Understanding the U.S. health service system (3rd ed.). Chicago, IL: Health Administration Press. Gleckman, H. (2009). The Future of Long-Term Care: What Is Its Place In The Health Reform Debate? Retrieved from http://www.urban.org Raphael, C. (June 2003). Long-term care confronting today’s challenges. Retrieved from http://www.academyhealth.org