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The Cleveland Alzheimer's Managed Care Demonstration: Outcomes After 12 Months of Implementation

Purpose: This demonstration evaluates the effects of integrating Alzheimer's Association care consultation service with health care services offered by a large managed care system. The primary hypothesis is that Association care consultation will decrease service utilization, increase satisfact...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Gerontologist 2003-02, Vol.43 (1), p.73-85
Main Authors: Bass, David M., Clark, Patricia A., Looman, Wendy J., McCarthy, Catherine A., Eckert, Sharen
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:Purpose: This demonstration evaluates the effects of integrating Alzheimer's Association care consultation service with health care services offered by a large managed care system. The primary hypothesis is that Association care consultation will decrease service utilization, increase satisfaction with managed care, and decrease caregiver depression and care-related strain. Secondary modifying-effects hypotheses posit that the effects of the intervention will be intensified when patients have not received a firm dementia diagnosis, patients have more severe memory problems, caregivers use other Association services in tandem with care consultation, and caregivers are not patients' spouses. Design and Methods: The demonstration is a randomized trial that examines outcomes after a 12-month study period. Interview data from 157 primary family caregivers are combined with data abstracted from medical/administrative records. Results: Support for the primary hypothesis is found for selected, but not all, service utilization outcomes and for caregiver depression. Support for secondary modifying-effects hypotheses is found for satisfaction outcomes and care-related strain outcomes. Implications: Care consultation delivered within a partnership between a managed care health system and an Alzheimer's Association is a promising strategy for improving selected outcomes for patients with dementia and their caregivers.
ISSN:0016-9013
1758-5341
DOI:10.1093/geront/43.1.73