The adverse reactions to care scale: identifying and measuring triggers during transitions in care

Transitions in care tend to be difficult and complicated periods for older adults, families, and staff in long-term care facilities. For some older adults, care activities and care environments in facilities can lead to adverse reactions, such as resisting assistance with care or agitation and anxiety. Unfortunately, current tools do not adequately assess for triggers to such behaviors. In the current study, the 8-item Adverse Reactions to Care (ARC) scale was developed and tested with 89 older adults and their caregivers (N = 89). Exploratory factor analysis revealed the ARC scale loaded onto two distinct factors: (a) reactions to care activities and (b) reactions to care environments, with high overall reliability (alpha = 0.84). With additional testing, the ARC scale may be useful for clinicians in long-term care settings and for researchers focused on understanding care transitions for older adults.