Research / Journal abstracts

This study explores the perceived value of workplace accommodations from the perspective of the individual users of PAS who had contacted the Job Accommodation Network (JAN). A follow-up survey assessed their perspective on the impact of PAS and other accommodations. The findings indicate that people who have considered or implemented PAS accommodations perception of work ability increases from being "Substantially Limited" with no accommodation to "Not Limited at All" with accommodiation.

Disability measures recently introduced into the U.S. Current Population Survey offer an unprecedented opportunity to track, month by month, the labor force status of working-age adults with disabilities in the midst of a major economic downturn. Over a one-year period, the number of employed workers with disabilities declined at a rate more than three times that of workers without disabilities, and the unemployment rate rose dramatically to levels far exceeding that of other workers.

This article presents an overview of the direct-care workforce, touching upon training requirements, demographics, wages and benefits, and employment settings. It notes that, despite the U.S. needing more direct-care workers than ever, job quality in the field remains extremely low. The article proceeds to list several ways that policymakers and employer practices can improve the quality of direct-care jobs. The article was written by PHI Director of Policy Research, Dorie Seavey.

This latest installment of Health Affairs' new series The Care Span, supported by The SCAN Foundation, identifies several ways to strengthen transitional care processes through health reform provisions. Most of the interventions led to reductions in readmissions through at least thirty days after discharge. To learn about the recommendations and proposed strategies, peruse this publication.

To learn more about long-term services and supports, the key characteristics of a high-performing system, and new options and incentives in the Affordable Care Act that can support cost-effective programs to help people with disabilities remain in their homes and communities, access this article. This paper outlines the five key characteristics of a high-performing system of long-term services and supports and describes an emerging “scorecard” that could help measure states’ progress.

The new issue of Generations, the quarterly journal of the American Society on Aging, is devoted entirely to the eldercare workforce. The Winter 2010-11 issue covers: the current state of the nation’s eldercare workforce; the eldercare workforce’s makeup, deficiencies, and strengths; and strategies for much-needed workforce recruitment, training and management, policy development, and fostering of cultural competencies.

Most literature focuses on long-term services and support utilization rather than awareness. This Canadian study used a series of 12 vignettes to describe common situations faced by older adults for which community support services (CSSs) might be appropriate. The findings showed that awareness of CSSs is much lower than previously thought, and that the most important sources of information were information and referral sources, the telephone book, doctors’ offices, and word of mouth.

Deficiencies in current LTC financing models are substantial. This article examines what characteristics predispose LTC specialists to weigh one approach, public or private, more than the other. Data are derived from a Web-based survey of 1,147 individuals with known or demonstrable experience with LTC, including consumer advocates, provider representatives, policy experts, and public officials.

Families have always borne the burden of long-term care, and struggle with feelings of grief, loss, despair, anger and hopelessness. In this powerful first person account, the author points out some of the sad consequences of the American health care system's emphasis on the treatment of acute episodic illness or injury and its relative neglect of chronic illness long-term care. This essay, written for the New England Journal of Medicine’s “Sounding Board” series, is considered a seminal work.

Only 10% of Americans have long-term care insurance and many insurance companies have terminated, or significantly raised the cost of their long-term care insurance offerings. Within this context, the author examines the CLASS program and compares its various features to currently available long-term care insurance policies, focusing on benefit eligibility, enrollment procedures, scope of benefits, ease of acquisition, program solvency, premium stability, and other features.