A Guide to Adult Day Services

for Caregivers

Adult day services centers have grown markedly since the first centers, as we know them today, opened in the United States in the 1960s. Given the demographics, we can expect the demand to increase beyond the estimated 5,000+ centers already operating in the United States.

Unlike senior centers, which are usually sponsored by recreational departments and targeted at healthy older adults, adult day services are a resource for people with physical limitations or limited functioning due to memory loss. Adult day services typically provide: Supervision. Recreation and social activities.

Find Adult Day Services Near You

Adult day services centers serve as an emerging provider of transitional care and short-term rehabilitation following hospital discharge. Their reliable support helps restore balance in times of crisis and enhance overall quality of life for caregivers. Adult day services allow working caregivers to attend to job responsibilities with the comfort of knowing their family member is in a professionally staffed, supportive group program.

Texas Adult Day Care

The State of Texas requires a staff to participant ratio of 1:8. For Medicaid waiver clients Texas requires a minimum of one registered nurse or licensed vocational nurse on site 8 hours per day and states further that sufficient licensed nursing staff must be on site to meet the nursing needs of the clients.

The facility must provide all staff with training in fire, disaster, and evacuation procedures within 3 work days of employment and provide direct care staff a minimum of 18 hours of training during the first 3 months of employment.

It is also required by the state of Texas that individuals who self-administer their medications to be counseled at least once a month by licensed nursing staff to ascertain if they continue to be capable of self-administering their medications.

Cost of Adult Day Care in Texas

The average cost of Adult Day Care in Texas is $33 per day. Respite care provided by adult day care centers is ideal for caregivers needing respite (a break) for themselves when caring for a loved ones with Alzheimer's. Adult day services is a professional care setting in which older adults, adults living with dementia, or adults living with disabilities receive individualized therapeutic, social, and health services for some part of the day.

Adult day service centers provide a coordinated program of professional and compassionate services for adults in a community-based group setting. Services are designed to provide social and some health services to adults who need supervised care in a safe place outside the home during the day. They also afford caregivers respite from the demanding responsibilities of caregiving.

Adult day centers generally operate during normal business hours five days a week. Some programs offer services in the evenings and on weekends.

Although each facility may differ in terms of features, the following are generally offered by most adult day centers:

Social activities - interaction with other participants in planned activities appropriate for their conditions
Transportation-door-to-door service
Meals and snacks-participants are provided with meals and snacks, those with special dietary needs are offered special meals
Personal care-help with toileting, grooming, eating and other personal activities of daily living
Therapeutic activities-exercise and mental interaction for all participants.

In general, there are three (3) types of adult day centers:

Social (which provides meals, recreation and some health-related services)
Medical/health (which provides social activities as well as more intensive health and therapeutic services) and
Specialized (which provide services only to specific care recipients, such as those with diagnosed dementias or developmental disabilities.

Cargivers typically select the type of center a care recipient attends based on the type of care needed.

Source: www.nadsa.org

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DISCLAIMER: Links to other websites or references to products, services or publications do not imply the endorsement or approval of such websites, products, services or publications by Elder Options of Texas. The determination of the need for senior care services and the choice of a facility is an extremely important decision. Please make your own independent investigation.