NEEDED AND RECEIVED HOME/COMMUNITY-BASED SERVICES - EXPERIENCES OF RURAL CAREGIVERS OF OLDER VETERANS - Aging Innovation in Aging 2025

Sep 29, 2026

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Home/community-based programs have become essential as nursing homes and assisted living are scarce and older adults prefer to age at home. A national survey of informal caregivers of Veterans aged 65+ (N=511; rural 258, urban 253) showed no overall rural–urban differences in interest in services, except higher rural interest in respite. Among caregivers who searched for services (N=226), location showed no significant effect overall, while respite searches differed. Urban caregivers reported receiving support, community, and helping services far more often, underscoring unequal access that can harm rural health and increase institutionalization.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages1

Reading Time3 min

AccessFree to download

Background

Study Design and Sample

Caregivers’ Interest in Services

Searching for Services

Differences in Services Received

Implications for Rural Health

782 Innovation in Aging, 2025, Vol. 9, No. S2 Abstract citation ID: igaf122.2656 NEEDED AND RECEIVED HOME/COMMUNITY-BASED SERVICES: EXPERIENCES OF RURAL CAREGIVERS OF OLDER VETERANS Elizabeth Chamberlin1, Steve Shirk2, Victoria Ngo1, Elizabeth Marfeo3, and Lauren Moo4, 1. VA Bedford Health Care System, Bedford, Massachusetts, United States, 2. Department of Veterans Affairs, Bedford, Massachusetts, United States, 3. Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts, United States, 4. VA Bedford Healthcare System, Bedford, Massachusetts, United States The lack of nursing homes and assisted living facilities and the wish to age at home has led to an exponential rise in informal (family, friends) caregivers. Thus, home/community-based programs and services are vital resources to keep people in their homes. As a large population of informal caregivers and care recipients live in rural locales, it is important to determine if locality matters. A national survey of informal caregivers of older (≥65) Veterans (N = 511 [rural=258, urban=253]) found no significant difference between rural and urban caregivers’ interest in types of service, with the exception that rural caregivers were more interested in respite services than urban caregivers. No difference based on location for those who actively searched for services (N = 226) (estimate = -0.11, p = 0.2058, OR = 0.80) . Among the services searched for, respite was significantly different for rural and urban, with searches for this service approximately half as unlikely for those residing in urban communities, OR =0.53. Urban caregivers reported receiving caregiver support, community, and helping services more than rural caregivers, with urban caregivers approximately three times as likely to have received support (OR = 3.01) and over twice as likely to have received community and helping services (OR = 2.35 and OR = 2.32, respectively) than their rural counterparts. These findings highlight the unevenness in services needed and those received by caregivers’ locality. The lack of services in rural areas can decrease the overall health of older rural Veterans and lead to institutionalization.

FAQs

What problem does the document address regarding caregiving for older Veterans?

It addresses the growing reliance on informal caregivers as access to nursing homes and assisted living is limited, and examines whether rural versus urban location affects the services caregivers need and receive.

How do rural and urban caregivers differ in their interest in services?

The survey found no significant rural–urban difference in overall service interest, except that rural caregivers were more interested in respite services than urban caregivers.

What services were rural caregivers less likely to receive compared with urban caregivers?

Urban caregivers reported receiving caregiver support, community, and helping services more often than rural caregivers, with notably higher odds of having received these supports.

Sep 29, 2026

Upload by Levi