Implementation of Function-Focused Care to Change Practice Behavior of Direct Care Workers in Assisted Living

Assisted living (AL) communities are home to over 830,000 adults, who are mostly 85 years and older. Older adults in AL spend the majority of their waking time sedentary and experience more decline in functional performance compared to nursing home residents. Decreased physical activity and functional impairment are strong predictors of adverse outcomes, institutionalization, and decreased quality of life. Routine care provided by direct care workers (DCWs) traditionally focuses on task completion, which limits residents ’ function and physical activity.

Source: Journal of the American Medical Directors Association - February 27, 2019 Category: Health Management Authors: Jade Kim, J. Kim, B. Windemuth Tags: Quality Improvement Source Type: research