Heterogeneity Within Adult Day Services: A Focus on Centers That Serve Younger Adults With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

Abstract

As the population of younger adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities continues to grow, adult day services is positioned to be a key provider of community-based care and support. In this article, researchers examine how adult day centers that serve younger adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities differ from centers that serve older and mixed age groups. One-way analyses of variance and post hoc analyses of 490 adult day services centers (N = 490) revealed significant differences in terms of participant, staffing, and organizational characteristics. These findings have important implications for service providers, researchers, and policy makers.

Employment preferences of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities: An evaluation of gender and age differences

“…It is noteworthy that day programs have taken steps to improve quality of care for individuals who attend. These improvements have included attempting to increase independence, by adapting services based on differences in need, or by introducing trauma informed care (Anderson et al, 2014; Keesler, 2016; Towery et al, 2014). However, it is important to recognise that participants did not identify what their current daytime activities included.…”

Adult Day Services for People With Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

“…The 10 included articles may be considered to fall into 1 of 2 broad categories: descriptive studies and intervention studies. The former category consists of the Anderson et al, 22 Taylor and Seltzer, 23 and Mahoney and Roberts 24 articles. Anderson and colleagues conducted a national survey that received responses from 490 ADS centers, of which 51 primarily served younger adults with IDD (defined as 80% or more of the participants at the center).…”

“…The specific age cutoff for "younger" adults was not defined. 22 The authors determined that as compared to centers that primarily serve older adults, centers serving younger adults with IDD provided more direct care worker hours but fewer registered nurse and social work hours. They also provided fewer licensed practical nurse hours than centers that served both older adults and younger adults with IDD in the same setting (defined by the authors as "blended" centers).…”

“…They also provided fewer licensed practical nurse hours than centers that served both older adults and younger adults with IDD in the same setting (defined by the authors as "blended" centers). 22 Finally, Anderson et al also determined that centers primarily serving younger adults with IDD had higher daily attendance levels, longer enrollment periods, and lower percentages of their budgets coming from private pay as compared to centers primarily serving older adults. In fact, these centers reported that over 97% of their funding came from public sources.…”

Variations Between Adult Day Services Centers in the United States by the Racial and Ethnic Case-Mix of Center Participants

“…Adult day services are a growing HCBS sector in the United States, which provides services for community-dwelling older adults with disabilities and adults with mental illness or intellectual and developmental disabilities. Centers offer day-time social and medical care intended to improve quality of life, reduce rates of institutionalization, and provide respite for unpaid and informal caregivers (Anderson et al, 2014; Dabelko-Schoeny et al, 2014; Zarit et al, 2013). ADSCs vary by state and U.S. regions, organizational characteristics, services provided, revenue sources, and participant needs, all of which may have implications for quality of care (Lendon & Rome, 2018; Park-Lee et al, 2015; Rome et al, 2015).…”