When Congress authorized the Alzheimer's Disease Demonstration Grants to States program in 1990, no one knew how effective the program would prove to be. A New Look at Community-Based Respite Programs provides you with results of the first major evaluation of ADDGS programs. Across the country, groups were able to develop specialized programs that reached traditionally underserved clients. A byproduct of many of the ADDGS programs was that they helped strengthen ties between communities and agencies, improving social services for both caregivers and people with Alzheimer's.

A New Look at Community-Based Respite Programs examines:

• the profile of the average respite care user
• different challenges faced by urban and rural clientele
• how culture and ethnicity influence health care decisions
• ways to involve communities in respite care
• how understanding patterns of use makes for better program design and implementation

A New Look at Community-Based Respite Programs provides you with detailed analyses of a variety of successful support service plans, including mobile day care, Latino-specific outreach, traveling dementia evaluation teams, and programs designed for people who live alone. You'll also read about the importance of complementing family caregivers instead of substituting for them. Throughout, helpful tables make the results of ADDGS programs clear.

It is estimated that Alzheimer's will affect up to 14 million Americans by the year 2050. A New Look at Community-Based Respite Programs contains vital knowledge that you can act on now to help lay the foundations for a better future.

Reviews:

"CLEAR, STRAIGHTFORWARD, AND WELL FOCUSED on practical issues of service delivery . . . maintains a high standard of scholarship. A MUST-READ for anyone interested in planning or evaluating respite services. . . . The first large-scale, longitudinal study of respite use. Service professionals, policymakers, and researchers in health policy, gerontology, and medical sociology will find the text of great value."

Judith G. Gonyea, PhD, Associate Professor, Boston University School of Social Work

"This WELCOME ADDITION TO THE MUST-READ LIST of service researchers, practitioners, and policymakers not only takes a new look at respite, but also documents the evaluation of a groundbreaking representative and culturally competent national respite program. . . . The clearly articulated practice and policy implications will be welcomed by consumers and bottom-liners alike."

Lisa P. Gwyther, MSW, LCSW, Education Director, Bryan Alzheimer’s disease Research Center, Duke University Medical Center

Contents:

• Foreword
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction: A New Look at Community-Based Respite Programs: Utilization, Satisfaction, and Development
• Initial Findings from the Evaluation of the Alzheimer's Disease Demonstration Grants to States Program
• Profiles of Respite Use
• The Role of Cultural Factors on Clients' Attitudes Toward Caregiving, Perceptions of Service Delivery, and Service
• Utilization
• Factors Related to Client Satisfaction with Community-Based Respite Services
• Successful Strategies for Serving Diverse Populations
• Comment on the Utility of the ADDGS Evaluation for Policy and Practice
• Exemplars of Successful Alzheimer's Demonstration Projects
• Index
• Reference Notes Included