The Effect of Licensure Type on the Policies, Practices, and Resident Composition of Florida Assisted Living Facilities

Abstract

These differences by facility type raise important quality of life issues for both the frail elderly individuals and assisted living residents who do not fit the conventional demographic profile.

Assisted Living Literature Through May 2004: Taking Stock

“…The preliminary results from a study of a post-hospital AL benefit for clients of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs were under Congressional embargo at the time of this review (Hedrick & Guihan, 2005). Further statewide studies were in the field in Florida (Street, Quadagno, & Burge, 2005) and New Jersey (Lucas et al, 2007), and a demonstration of two types of Medicaid AL was just beginning in California. On the more qualitative side, a multifaceted study of negotiated risk contracting in AL was underway (funded by the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation and conducted by RTI International (Jenkens, O'Keeffe, Carder, & Wilson, 2006); and Eckert and his team were studying many topics qualitatively, including the physician role in AL and transitions from AL.…”

Willingness to Use Mental Health Services Among Older Residents in Assisted Living

“…The average bed size was 104.2 (SD = 51), with a range of 30 to 230. Of 17 facilities, 6 ALs had an extended congregate care license and 3 ALs had a limited nursing license (see Street et al, 2009, for detailed description of different license categories). Table 1 shows descriptive sample characteristics for the overall sample along with comparisons between those who were willing to use mental health services and those who were not.…”

“…First, the original study by Jang and colleagues (2006) focused on older adults not receiving treatment for depression. Second, individuals residing in facilities with this specialty license are more likely to be known to the mental health service delivery system and more often are younger adults with serious mental illness (Street et al, 2009). From a total of 116 ALFs in the county, 38 facilities located within 30 min of driving distance from the research site were selected for initial telephone contact.…”

“…Although it is generally believed that AL residents are less impaired than nursing home residents, evidence suggests that AL residents do not differ from nursing home residents with respect to the prevalence of depressive disorders and behavioral symptoms (Golant, 2004;Sloane et al, 2005;Zimmerman et al, 2001). Yet, unlike nursing homes that have been heavily regulated, there is no mandated supervision regarding screening and treatment of depression or other mental disorders in AL settings (Street, Burge, & Quadagno, 2009;Watson, Garrett, Sloane, Gruber-Baldini, & Zimmerman, 2003).…”

Correlates of Attitudes Toward Personal Aging in Older Assisted Living Residents

“…The list provides contact information, category of licensure, and the number of beds. Facilities were excluded if they did not have any older adults in residence, or if they were licensed for mental health care; the latter criterion was used because residents in such places have distinctively different profiles from those in ALs, including often serving younger adults with serious mental illness (Street, Burge, & Quadagno, 2009). From a total of 116 eligible ALs in the county, 38 facilities within a radius of 30 miles from the research site were purposefully selected for initial telephone contact.…”