Senior Care Terms Explained: A Beginner’s Guide to Care Planning in India

Created by: DeepMaarg team | Last updated: 2 October 2026

A care plan can be hard to follow when it is full of terms such as ADL, CGA, or frailty. You do not need to memorize medical jargon. Knowing what these words mean can help you ask better questions, understand what support an older adult may need, and turn a care discussion into clear next steps. This guide explains common terms in plain English and shows how to use them in a practical care plan in India.

Key takeaways

•A care plan connects the older person’s needs and priorities to agreed actions, named helpers, and a review point.

•Terms such as ADL, IADL, frailty, and medication reconciliation describe different parts of a person’s life and health; none should be treated as a diagnosis on its own.

•The older adult’s preferences belong in the plan. Local services and professional support vary, so confirm what is actually available.

Start with two useful terms

Care plan or care planning

A care plan is a shared, written working plan for a person’s health, daily support, and follow-up. It should connect a need to a goal, an action, the person responsible, and a time or reason to review it. It changes when the person’s health, preferences, or circumstances change.

In India’s Health and Wellness Centre (HWC) guidance, a Community Health Officer (CHO) develops and administers a personalized plan in consultation with the linked Primary Health Centre Medical Officer. The guidance also describes caregiver support, referrals, and follow-up. This is an operational framework; it does not mean every service is available in every locality. (Government of India HWC operational guidelines)

Comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA)

CGA is a broad assessment of an older person—not just a check of one disease. It may consider medical conditions, movement and everyday function, memory and mood, nutrition, social support, and the home environment. Its purpose is to identify what matters and coordinate an appropriate plan with the older person and care team.

A CGA is an assessment process, not a care plan by itself.

Everyday function: what help is actually needed?

ADL and IADL

ADL means activities of daily living: basic personal-care tasks such as bathing, dressing, eating, using the toilet, and moving between a bed and chair. IADL means instrumental activities of daily living: more complex tasks that help someone manage life at home or in the community, such as preparing meals, shopping, using a phone, handling medicines or money, and traveling.

A difficulty with an ADL or IADL describes a task—not its cause. It does not, by itself, diagnose a medical condition or prove the person cannot do anything independently. Assessment tools also differ in the activities they include. Indian research has used these concepts to study older adults’ function and daily support needs. (Indian ADL study; Indian IADL scale study)

Mobility and falls-risk assessment

This means looking at how a person moves in their real daily routine: walking, balance, transfers, recent falls, and places or tasks that feel difficult. A useful care plan records the specific concern and agreed next step—for example, asking a qualified professional to assess a change in mobility or reviewing a difficult route in the home. A score is not a prediction of the future and should not automatically mean restricting activity.

Frailty

Frailty describes reduced physical reserve and resilience, which can make an older person more vulnerable to the effects of an illness or other health stress. It is not simply another word for ageing, and it is not the same as disability. If the term appears in a report, ask what was assessed and what practical support or follow-up is being proposed. Tools and thresholds can vary.

Health terms you may hear in a clinic or care meeting

Multimorbidity and comorbidity

Multimorbidity means living with several long-term health conditions at the same time. Comorbidity usually describes additional conditions alongside one chosen main condition. The distinction can help a care team consider how conditions and treatments fit together, rather than discussing each diagnosis in isolation.

The term alone does not tell you how severe a condition is or what matters most to the person. In a care discussion, ask: “Which issues most affect daily life, and who is coordinating the overall plan?”

Medication reconciliation and polypharmacy

Medication reconciliation is the process of making an accurate list of what a person actually takes and checking it against prescriptions or health records with a clinician or pharmacist. Bring medicine packages or a current list—including prescription medicines, over-the-counter products, vitamins, herbal or traditional remedies, and medicines taken only when needed.

Polypharmacy means using multiple medicines at the same time. The word is not proof that the medicines are wrong: several may be appropriate. Ask whether the list has been reviewed, especially after a hospital stay or a change in care. Do not start, stop, combine, or change a medicine based only on a glossary or list. Discuss any concern with the prescriber or pharmacist. (WHO medication-safety guidance; study of older adults in Indian urban communities)

Cognition, dementia, and delirium

Cognition includes memory, attention, understanding, communication, and orientation. Dementia is usually a longer-term, progressive decline in thinking abilities that affects everyday independence. Delirium is a sudden change in attention, awareness, or thinking; it may fluctuate and can occur in someone who already has dementia.

A new, sudden change in confusion should not simply be assumed to be “old age” or dementia. Make a note of when the change began and seek prompt clinical assessment. The Indian Psychiatric Society’s guidelines discuss dementia and delirium as distinct conditions. (Dementia guideline; delirium guideline)

Nutrition, malnutrition, and hydration

Nutrition screening looks for signs that someone may be at risk of poor nutrition; it is not a diagnosis. In a care plan, useful observations include appetite, usual food preferences, changes in eating or weight, and any difficulty chewing or swallowing. Hydration means fluid intake appropriate for that person.

Ask a qualified professional about a concern such as ongoing poor intake, weight change, dehydration, or coughing and choking with food or drink. India’s ICMR–National Institute of Nutrition Dietary Guidelines for Indians 2024 includes guidance for older adults, but general dietary guidance is not an individual food or fluid prescription. Do not set a personal fluid target or change food texture without appropriate advice.

Palliative care

Palliative care focuses on relief from pain and other distressing symptoms, support for emotional and social needs, and quality of life for people and families facing serious illness. It can be provided alongside treatment intended to control or treat the illness; it does not mean “nothing more can be done” or only care in the final days.

India’s National Programme for Palliative Care guidelines describe palliative care as applicable early in illness and alongside other therapies. Ask the treating team what support is available locally.

Planning with the older adult and family

Person-centred care and shared decision-making

Person-centred care starts with the older person’s needs, routines, values, and preferences—not only a list of diagnoses. Shared decision-making is a discussion about suitable options and what fits the person’s priorities. Ask the older adult whom they want involved. Family support can be valuable, but it should not erase the person’s voice.

Goals of care and advance care planning

A goal of care describes what the person wants their care to help achieve—for example, maintaining a valued routine, managing distressing symptoms, or getting help to remain at home if that is their preference and feasible.

Advance care planning (ACP) is an ongoing conversation about a person’s values and possible future care preferences. It is not automatically the same as a formal Indian Advance Medical Directive (AMD), sometimes called a living will. Because formal directives and treatment decisions have legal safeguards, a care-plan note should not be presented as a substitute for legal or clinical advice. The Supreme Court of India’s 11 March 2026 judgment discusses the current legal position and formal AMD framework.

Caregiver assessment and respite care

A caregiver assessment is a conversation about the support a family or other caregiver is providing, what feels manageable, and what help or training they may need. It is not a test of whether someone is a good family member. Respite care means temporary support that gives the usual caregiver a break while the older person continues to receive care; what is available varies by place and provider.

A plan can name tasks that could be shared, questions for the care team, and local support to explore. Avoid assuming one family member can provide unlimited care.

A simple example: turn terminology into action

Illustrative example only—not a clinical recommendation. Suppose an older adult wants to remain at home, has recently needed help with bathing, and the family is unsure what support to arrange.

That is where terminology becomes useful: ADL helps describe the bathing difficulty; CGA may help organize a broader assessment; person-centred care keeps the older adult’s preference visible; and a written care plan makes the next step and responsibility clear.

Questions to ask when you see an unfamiliar term

•What does this term mean for this person—not just in general?

•What was assessed, and who completed the assessment?

•What can the older adult still do independently, and what help do they want?

•What is the next action, who is responsible, and when will we review it?

•Which services are actually available locally?

You do not need to become a medical expert to take part in a care plan. Ask for plain-language explanations, make the older person’s preferences visible, and check that every important concern has a next step and a person responsible. A good plan is understandable, shared, and updated as needs change.

References

•National Health Systems Resource Centre / Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Operational Guidelines for Elderly Care at Health and Wellness Centres — Indian community-care framework for assessment, personalized plans, caregiver support, referrals, and follow-up.

•Directorate General of Health Services, National Programme for the Health Care of the Elderly (NPHCE) — Government of India programme overview; facility service packages may vary.

•ICMR–National Institute of Nutrition, Dietary Guidelines for Indians 2024 — General nutrition guidance, including a section for older adults; not an individual prescription.

•Directorate General of Health Services, National Programme for Palliative Care: Operational Guidelines (2017) — India programme definition and approach to palliative care.

•Supreme Court of India, Harish Rana v. Union of India, judgment dated 11 March 2026 — Current judicial source on formal Advance Medical Directives; recheck the legal position before relying on it.

•Indian Psychiatric Society, Clinical Practice Guidelines for Management of Dementia (2018) and Clinical Practice Guidelines for Management of Delirium in Elderly (2018) — Indian professional guidance distinguishing these terms.

•Usha et al., Assessment of Activities of Daily Living in an elderly population, Indian Journal of Community Health (2020) and Mathuranath et al., Instrumental Activities of Daily Living scale for dementia screening in elderly people (2005) — Indian research examples of function measures; tools and populations differ.

•World Health Organization, Medication Safety in Polypharmacy (2019) — International medication-safety background; use with an Indian clinician or pharmacist, not as a personal treatment guide.

This article is general information for readers in India, not a diagnosis or individual medical/legal advice. Local services and care arrangements vary; discuss personal needs with qualified professionals.