Predictors of the utilization of long-term care (LTC) services among residents in community-based LTC facilities in Taiwan

Identifying the utilization behaviors of LTC residents is necessary in order to forecast the demand and the level of resource use for health services. The purpose of this study is to understand the utilization behaviors and their predictors among residents of community-based LTC facilities in Taiwan. A prospective design was used in this study. Subjects were from six community-based LTC facilities in Beitou district of Taipei, Taiwan. A one-month time sheet was developed comprising subjects’ socio-demographic characteristics, health status, and their use of LTC services. Among five types of LTC services examined in this study, assistance with activities of daily living (ADL) were the most commonly used (mean = 67.3 ± 46.0). ADL score was the strongest predictor of service utilization, accounting for 40% of the total variation in the utilization of personal assistance services (R² = 0.396). The second most commonly used service was skilled-nursing services (mean = 13.3 ± 10.3). The most common skilled-nursing activities were administration of medication (mean = 5.2 ± 3.9) and measuring vital sign measurement (mean = 3.4 ± 2.3). The results provide useful information on how to allocate resources among staff in community-based LTC facilities.