In 2022, the Administration for Community Living (ACL) awarded LifeCare Alliance nearly $3 million for a multi-year Innovations in Nutrition and Services grant to study how integrating nutrition services with health programs can positively impact health outcomes for seniors 60 years of age and older.
The goal of this research is to create an evidence-based model to prove the hypothesis that combining home delivered meals with the services of a Registered Dietitian and occupational therapist can help older Americans remain independent and living in their own homes longer and more securely. This is the second Innovations in Nutrition and Services grant LifeCare Alliance has been awarded. Previously, the ACL awarded the agency $750,000 which allowed us to expand our model of care to increase internal case management, strengthen our referral infrastructure, and collect critical health outcome data to measure the success and impact of our interventions.
The team wrapped up a pilot of the study and moved into the first wave of research in August 2024. Study participants receive either Meals-on-Wheels only, Meals-on-Wheels with Registered Dietitian services, Meals-on-Wheels with occupational therapy, or Meals-on-Wheels, Registered Dietitian services, and occupational therapy. Through the end of March 2025, the team has enrolled 159 households into the study to evaluate the following research question: Compared to meals alone, what is the effect of Registered Dietitian and occupational therapy services on fall risk among home delivered meal clients?
The ultimate objective of the current grant is to create a replicable model that can be used as an example for Meals on Wheels providers across the country. Once again, as in the days when we were chosen to pilot one of the first home delivered meals programs in the nation, LifeCare Alliance is leading the way in empowering seniors to live independently in their own homes—right where they want to be.
*This project was supported, in part by grant number 90INNU0044, from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects with government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official ACL policy.
