Levels of Care Criteria

Guideline for Level of Care Assessment

These are general guidelines used by the Care Planning Team to determine the appropriate level of care for an individual.

Assisted Living

(Able to function safely with some assistance or supervision from staff)

Activities of Daily Living:

  • May need help with meal preparation or reminders to eat at mealtime
  • May need help getting in and out of shower safely
  • May need help washing thoroughly or require reminders about personal hygiene
  • May need help with zippers, stockings, shoes, or buttons
  • May need help with personal laundry

Ambulation:

  • Able to ambulate safely without staff assistance about apartment
  • Able to transfer from bed to chair without staff assistance
  • Able to exit in an emergency with staff cuing only

Continence:

  • Able to get to and from toilet without assistance
  • Able to manage incontinence appropriately (including odor control) with staff supervision

Cognition:

  • Can be re-oriented to person, place and time by staff
  • Able to recognize safety hazards and respond appropriately
  • May need staff assistance to schedule and keep appointment
  • Able to vacate in an emergency

General Health Status:

  • May have trouble hearing warning signals
  • May be unwilling or unable to use telephone in emergency
  • May be unable to read printed materials
  • May have difficulty recognizing faces
  • May experience mild anxiety or depression
  • May need encouragement to socialize and maintain relationships
  • May need supervision to take medication, may forget doses or have a pattern of medication abuse
  • General health status – would benefit from general oversight and supervision

Nursing Care

(Requires extensive assistance and/or daily oversight of health status by Registered Nurses)

Activities of Daily Living:

  • Unable or unwilling to attend to personal hygiene without assistance
  • Requires extensive assistance to dress, does not dress, or has tendency to remove clothing during the day
  • May need to be fed by someone, refuses to eat, or is nourished through a tube or IV line
  • Unable to maintain clean, laundered clothing without assistance

Ambulation:

  • Unable to ambulate safely without staff supervision/assistance
  • Unable to transfer independently
  • May be confined to bed or wheelchair

Continence:

  • Unable to get to and from toilet without assistance
  • Requires assistance to manage incontinence

Cognition:

  • Easily disoriented / Not reoriented easily
  • Unable to recognize safety hazards and respond appropriately
  • Unable to vacate in an emergency without direct assistance

General Health Status:

  • General health status that benefits from regular supervision by Registered Nurses
  • Unable to understand what others are saying or appear unwilling to communicate
  • Impaired vision or speech that endangers personal safety
  • Moderate to severe depression or anxiety
  • Abusive or disturbing personality traits
  • Unable to manage medication