
Special care units for people with Alzheimer's disease. Only for the privileged few?
The number of Special Care Units (SCUs) for people with Alzheimer's disease (AD) in nursing homes have increased dramatically in the past 10 years. Despite the rapid increase in number of SCUs and the concern that most SCUs report higher costs than traditional nursing home units where residents with AD are integrated with cognitively intact residents, the evaluation of costs has been largely unsystematic and noncomparative. Studies are urgently needed to assess comparative costs so that administrators and policy makers can make informed decisions. This article reviews studies that examine the costs of care in SCUs and presents cost-related data comparing the outcomes of care for residents with AD on a SCU and on traditional units in one long-term care setting.
Duke Scholars
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Related Subject Headings
- Workforce
- Social Class
- Personnel Staffing and Scheduling
- Outcome Assessment, Health Care
- Nursing
- Male
- Long-Term Care
- Humans
- Hospital Units
- Health Services Research
Citation

Published In
DOI
ISSN
Publication Date
Volume
Issue
Start / End Page
Related Subject Headings
- Workforce
- Social Class
- Personnel Staffing and Scheduling
- Outcome Assessment, Health Care
- Nursing
- Male
- Long-Term Care
- Humans
- Hospital Units
- Health Services Research