Community-based long-term care encompasses a wide array of medic al and non-medical diagnostic, preventive, therapeutic, rehabilitative, personal, social, supportive, and palliative services in a variety of settings for individuals who have lost some capacity for self-care because of a chronic illness or physical, cognitive, or emotional impairment. Some support services allow the patient to remain at home, whereas other services require a change of residence. The goal of care is to build on interprofessional expertise and teamwork to promote the optimally independent level of physical, social, and psychological functioning in the least restrictive environment. Most older adults with chronic health problems prefer to remain at home or in a homelike setting. A minority of older adults live in nursing homes, and there has been a trend toward community-based services to provide support. Community-based long-term care services focus on the older adult's medic al and psychosocial needs and aim to maintain function, prevent acute exacerbations of chronic illness, and avoid unnecessary and costly emergency room visits and hospitalizations.