Adult Day Care Centers - What You Should Know...
What is an Adult Day Care Center?
Adult day care is a planned program of activities designed to promote well-being through social and health related services. Adult day care centers operate during daytime hours, Monday through Friday, and provide a safe, supportive, and cheerful environment for the seniors served. Leisure activities might include arts and crafts, hobbies, outings, and other outside activities. Nutritious meals that accommodate special diets are typically included, along with a healthy afternoon snack.
The services provided by adult day care centers may vary.
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Respite care may be provided for the purpose of relieving the primary caregivers.
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Additional service might include health or social services assessment, counseling, treatment and referral for speech, physical or occupational therapy.
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Health care services such as medical screenings such as blood pressure checks or blood glucose diabetic maintenance checks, nursing services such as health education and counseling.
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Transportation to and from the adult day care center may be part of the program.
Adult day care centers can be public or private, non-profit or for-profit. The intent of an adult day center is primarily two-fold:
- to provide older adults an opportunity to get out of the house and receive both mental and social stimulation
- to give caregivers a much-needed break in which to attend to personal needs, or simply rest or relax
Approximately 4,000 adult day care centers operate nationwide, according to the National Adult Day Services Association (NADSA). This number has grown dramatically over the past two decades, corresponding to the "mushrooming demand for home and community based services" to meet the needs of a rapidly escalating elder population.
Good candidates for adult day care are seniors who -
- can benefit from the friendship and functional assistance a day care center offers,
- may be physically or cognitively challenged but do not require 24-hour supervision,
- are in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease.
Adult day care center participants need to be mobile, with the possible assistance of a cane, walker or wheelchair, and in most cases, they must also be continent.
Funding -
Some insurance policies may assist with off-setting the cost of adult day care, but the majority of participants utilize private funds. Some participants have benefited from funding administered through the Department of Elder Affairs and the Department of Children and Families, or by a Florida Medicaid waiver program.