Aim:
The objective of this study was to examine service utilization figures among a representative sample of demented patients and to determine whether sociodemographic and health-related variables are associated with care utilization.
Method:
The study population was derived from a population-based, two-stage cross-sectional study in the netherlands and consisted of 102 demented subjects. four levels of care intensity were used: level 1, no use of professional care; level 2, use of one or more types of professional care by community-dwelling subjects; level 3, residential living in homes for the aged; level 4, long-term care in specialized nursing homes. sociodemographic variables and variables related to mental and physical health, functional dependency and severity of dementia were studied as determinants of levels of care.
Results:
Eighty-two per cent of the study subjects used one or more types of formal care and 55% were institutionalized. multivariate analysis yielded age, severity of dementia, somatic disorders, dependency in terms of adl and martial status as predictors of higher levels of care. sets of predictors differed across different care levels.
Conclusions:
The findings point to the importance of the social network and the relevance of general medical treatment and an active approach towards decreasing the impact of adl dependency in demented subjects.