Research by Author & Topic

Publications by Sharon K. Long on Community-based Care

This study explores how low-income functionally impaired, elderly persons are able to remain in the community without home- and community-based care (HCBC). We find that, while most rely on informal care and Medicare home care services, many go without needed services. In a comparison with participants, the non-participants were found to be significantly more likely to enter a nursing home. While the study cannot attribute the higher nursing home entry to the absence of HCBC services with certainty, the findings raise the possibility that an expansion of HCBC services could delay the need for nursing home care for this population. (Long, Sharon, Liu, Korbin, Black, Kirsten, O'Keeffe, Janet, and Molony, Sheila. 2005. "Getting by in the Community: Lessons from Frail Elders." Journal of Aging & Social Policy 71(1): 19-44.)

Los Angeles County Department of Health Services (LACDHS) is undertaking an ambitious restructuring of its entire health care system. LACDHS is attempting to reduce its emphasis on emergency room and inpatient care by building a system of integrated community-based primary, specialty, and preventive care. This report provides an assessment of the demonstration project. It describes the problems and examines the progress in efforts at financial stabilization and structural reengineering.