Among the issues confronting America is long-term care for frail, older persons and others with chronic conditions and functional limitations that limit their ability to care for themselves. Improving the Quality of Long-Term Care takes a comprehensive look at the quality of care and quality of life in long-term care, including nursing homes, home health agencies, residential care facilities, family members and a variety of others. This book describes the current state of long-term care, identifying problem areas and offering recommendations for federal and state policymakers. Who uses long-term care? How have the characteristics of this population changed over time? What paths do people follow in long term care? The committee provides the latest information on these and other key questions. This book explores strengths and limitations of available data and research literature especially for settings other than nursing homes, on methods to measure, oversee, and improve the quality of long-term care. The committee makes recommendations on setting and enforcing standards of care, strengthening the caregiving workforce, reimbursement issues, and expanding the knowledge base to guide organizational and individual caregivers in improving the quality of care.

ÔThe Elgar Companion to Health Economics is a comprehensive and accessible look at the field, as seen by its leading figures.Õ Ð Joseph Newhouse, Harvard Medical School, US Acclaim for the first edition: ÔThis Companion is a timely addition. . . It contains 50 chapters, from 90 contributors around the world, on the topical and policy-relevant aspects of health economics. . . there is a balanced coverage of theoretical and empirical materials, and conceptual and practical issues. . . I have found the Companion very useful.Õ Ð Sukhan Jackson, Economic Analysis and Policy ÔThis encyclopedic work provides interested readers with an authoritative and comprehensive overview of many, if not all, of the current research issues in health economics. Highly recommended. Upper-level undergraduates and above.Õ Ð R.M. Mullner, Choice This comprehensive collection brings together more than 50 contributions from some of the most influential researchers in health economics. It authoritatively covers theoretical and empirical issues in health economics, with a balanced range of material on equity and efficiency in health care systems, health technology assessment and issues of concern for developing countries. This thoroughly revised second edition is expanded to include four new chapters, while all existing chapters have been extensively updated. The Elgar Companion to Health Economics, Second Edition intends to take an audience of advanced undergraduates, postgraduates and researchers to the current frontier of research by providing concise and readable introductions to key topics.