Harriet Hall, Administrator of Cape Cod Homemaker, a home health aide service, agrees.
"I think the need is quite bad," she said.
"I've seen a lot of elderly going to Taunton (State Hospital) when they most definitely do not need psychiatric care."
Ms. Hall said that her service sees many cases of elderly people who are living in their homes with spouses.
"The spouse tells us they know their mate should be in a nursing home but they can't afford this kind of care," she said.