Long-term care (LTC) covers a broad range of clinical and social services for those who require care due to functional limitations. These limitations usually arise from complications associated with age-related chronic conditions, disabilities related to birth defects, brain damage, or mental retardation in children; or from serious illnesses or injuries sustained as adults (Shi L. & Singh DA, 2011). LTC encompasses a variety of services including traditional clinical services, social services, and housing. Unlike acute care, long-term care is much more complicated and has goals that are much harder to measure. Acute care focuses primarily on returning patients to their previous functional level and is provided primarily by specialized providers. However, LTC focuses primarily on preventing an individual's physical and mental deterioration and promoting social adjustments to accommodate different stages of decline. Additionally, LTC providers are more diverse than acute care providers and are offered in both formal and informal settings, which include: hospitals, physicians, home care, adult day care, nursing home care, assisted living and even informal caregivers such as friends and family. Long-term care services were dominated by community-based services, including informal care (86%, approximately 10-11 million) and formal institutional care provided in nursing facilities (14%, 1.6 million ) (McCall, 2001). It is estimated that of the more than 10 million Americans in need of LTC services, 58% are elderly and 42% are under the age of 65 (Shi L. & Singh DA, 2011). LTC users are frail or disabled older adults, and due to the specific care needs of this population, care varies by individual...... paper center...... Aging Services.Nelda McCall (2001 ). Long-term care: definition, demand, costs and financing. Chicago: Health Administration Press, p. 19. Nelson, Bill (2013). The Senate Special Committee on Aging: The Future of Long-Term Care Policy: Continuing the Conversation. Aging.Senate.gov.Shi L. & Singh DA (2011). The health of the nation. Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.Stone, R. I. & Wiener, J. M. (2001). Who will take care of us? Addressing the long-term health workforce crisis. The Urban Institute.United Hospital Fund (2013). New York nursing homes: Changing roles and new challenges. Medicaid Institute at the United Hospital Fund. University of California (2006). An aging US population and the healthcare workforce: Factors influencing the need for geriatric healthcare workers. University of California, San Francisco, California Center for Health Workforce Studies.