ELDERLY PERSONS WITH MENTAL-RETARDATION - AN EXCEPTIONAL POPULATION WITH SPECIAL NEEDS

The passage of recent legislation has ensured special service provisio ns for a previously overlooked population, elderly persons with mental retardation. This article presents a broad overview of current resear ch studies on this topic and focuses on identification of the populati on, residential options, and service needs of elderly persons with men tal retardation. Similarities and differences between older persons wi th developmental disabilities and the nonretarded elderly, and service need requirements of this particular population arc also included. Fi nally, the importance of developing collaborative services of developm ental disability agencies and aging services is discussed as well as r ecommendations for future research needs.