Prior living arrangements and nursing home resident admission ADL characteristics: a study of two states.

OBJECTIVES This study examines the relationship between prior living arrangements and average activities of daily living (ADL) function upon nursing home admission across two states. METHODS Minimum Data Set Plus records from 1993 and 1994 on 4,837 Medicaid reimbursed nursing home residents aged 65 years and older from two states were used. Medicaid reimbursed residents were chosen because Medicaid reimbursement policies differ at the state level, and such differences might affect admission characteristics across states. Ordinary least squares models were used to examine the correlates of the number of ADL limitations (range 0-7) upon nursing home admission. RESULTS Residents in state A had a mean of 5.36 ADL limitations, whereas residents in state B had a mean of 4.83 limitations. Those who lived alone entered the nursing home with 0.61 fewer ADL limitations (p < .001) than those who lived with others. Living alone in state A reduced this association through an increase of 0.31 ADL limitations (p = .012). DISCUSSION Older Medicaid recipients who live alone enter the nursing home with better physical function than those who live with others. The difference in function between those who live alone and those who live with others varies across the two states.