Going home: community reentry of light care nursing facility residents age 65 and over

Issues of consumer choice, and rising public expenditures of nursing facility care for the rapidly increasing elderly population have fueled interest in community reentry of nursing facility residents. The Minimum Data Set Plus (MDS+) contains a wealth of information which can be used to provide a better understanding of nursing facility residents including those who discharge. This study employs the Andersen model of health services utilization and logistical regression on MDS+ data to examine characteristics of higher functioning nursing facility residents age 65 and over related to community reentry in one midwestern state. Findings include having Medicaid as a payer source significantly decreased the likelihood of discharge. In contrast, being younger than 85, retaining decision making responsibilities, and having no cognitive impairments were found to increase the likelihood of discharge. Policy and program implications related to identifying and assisting nursing facility residents in resuming community living are discussed.