AGING & DISABILITY SERVICES ADMINISTRATION
Specialized Dementia Care Program in Boarding Homes
Provider Introduction to Specialized Dementia Care Program in Boarding Homes
The Specialized Dementia Care Program is for a person with dementia who needs residential care and meets all program eligibility requirements (see below). DSHS pays for the person to receive a package of specialized dementia care services in a contracted boarding home. The goal of these services is for the person with dementia to maintain the highest possible quality of life and physical health while living with the typical losses of dementia.
Due to limited funding, DSHS contracts with a small number of boarding homes throughout the state to offer this program.
What Services Must Be Offered
The package of specialized dementia care services a contracted boarding home must agree to offer include (in part):
- Care, supervision, and activities tailored to the specific needs, interests, abilities, and preferences of the person.
- Coordination with the person’s family to ensure the person's routines and preferences are honored.
- Dementia-specific training for staff.
- Awake staff twenty-four hours a day.
- A safe outdoor environment with walking paths and access to a secure outdoor area.
- Intermittent nursing services, help with medications, personal care, and other support services.
Read the WACs that define what services must be offered.
Program Eligibility
A person with dementia must meet all three of the following criteria to be eligible for this program. In summary, the person must be:
- Diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease or another irreversible dementia such as vascular dementia, Lewy body dementia, Pick’s disease, or Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease.
- Receiving or eligible for Medicaid.
- Assessed by a DSHS assigned case manager and found to have the need for specialized dementia care.
Read detailed information about client eligibility requirements.
Taking the Next Step
Learn more about how to become an SCDP provider.
