Service Selection: Concordance Between Alzheimer's Disease Diagnostic and Treatment Center Clients' Choices and Program Staff Recommendations

Abstract

Service choices of Alzheimer's Disease Diagnostic and Treatment Centers (ADDTC) enrollees (N = 822) and ADDTC professional staff are compared. Results suggest that community- dwelling Alzheimer's patients are not high service consumers, and ADDTC staff generally agree with their service choices. Limited discordance noted pertained to recommended decreases in homemaker chore, senior center, meals, transportation, and home health use; and suggested increases in psychiatric service, case management, and adult day care use. Findings confirm the high degree of informal care of the demented and the reluctance or inability of patients and caregivers to use formal services. Results also indicate that as ADDTC-like programs prolifer ate, long-term care costs may remain unchanged because patients and caregivers may already know what formal care they need and want.