The Characteristics of Long-term Care Users. Table 8

Table 8. Characteristics of Elderly Persons in Housing with Supportive Services, 1993

Persons 70 and Older in Housing with Supportive Services1
CharacteristicNumber
Number of Persons542,600
Percent of Total Population Aged 70 and Older in 19932.6
Mean Age (years)81.8
CharacteristicPercent Distribution by Characteristic
Gender
Female
Male		79.7
20.3
Race
White
Black
Other		87.4
8.2
4.3
Marital Status
Married
Widowed
Never married
Separated/divorced		19.7
68.0
6.1
6.2
Education
Less than 12 years
12 years
Greater than 12 years		37.3
30.1
32.6
Type of Long-term Care Receipt2
No ADLs or IADLs
IADLs only
1-2 ADLs
3-6 ADLs		64.2
13.7
16.3
5.8
Cognitively Impaired3
Yes
No
Missing		44.7
49.6
5.6
Functional Limitations4
Upper body only
Lower body only
Upper and lower body
Neither		a
56.8
10.6
31.6
Difficulty Seeing31.6
Difficulty Hearing23.6
Service Use
Informal care only
Both informal and formal care
Formal care only
No formal or informal care		12.0
10.8
9.8
67.5

Source: Asset and Health Dynamics Among the Oldest Old (AHEAD).

Note: Some numbers may not add to total because of missing values. Except where shown, missing values do not exceed 2% of the relevant sample. ADL = Activities of daily living; IADL = Instrumental activities of daily living.

1 A housing unit is classified as offering supportive services if group meals; bathing, dressing or eating; or nursing care services are available.

2 Receipt of long-term care is defined as receiving human assistance with at least one of six ADLs and five IADLs. The ADLs included are eating, transferring, toileting, getting around inside, dressing, and bathing. The IADLs are meal preparation, grocery shopping, financial management, taking medication, and telephoning.
3 Persons were classified as cognitively impaired if they scored 15 or less in a scale containing 25 items related to the Mini Mental Status Questionnaire, immediate and delayed word recall, and number subtractions (Herzog and Wallace, 1997).

4 Lower body limitations include difficulties with walking several blocks, climbing a flight of stairs, pulling or pushing large objects, and lifting or carrying weights over 10 pounds. Upper body limitations include difficulty picking up small objects from a table.

a Unweighted cell size too small to report estimate.

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Current as of January 2001
Internet Citation: The Characteristics of Long-term Care Users. Table 8: Table 8. Characteristics of Elderly Persons in Housing with Supportive Services, 1993. January 2001. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/professionals/systems/long-term-care/resources/facilities/ltcusers/tab8use.html