Health care programs that provide multidisciplinary education, training and support regarding recommended therapeutic regimens, medical procedures and self-care for adults, adolescents and/or children who have undergone surgery or who have chronic conditions (such as diabetes, asthma/COPD, kidney disease/ESRD, heart disease/hypertension and AIDS) that require ongoing management, and/or for family members who may be involved in their care or affected by their condition. The objective of these programs is to empower patients to manage their own chronic conditions in partnership with their health care providers. Chronic disease self management assistance may be provided in a variety of settings including classes/workshops, individual counseling sessions and as home-based services, particularly in situations where conditions in the home have an impact on the individual's illness. Chronic diseases are illnesses that are prolonged, do not resolve spontaneously, and are rarely cured completely.

Individuals who are age 50, 55, 60, 62 or 65 or older depending on the minimum age for qualifying as an older adult which varies by program.

An inflammatory condition affecting the joints which is usually accompanied by pain and, frequently, by changes in bone and muscle positioning.

A disorder in which the pancreas produces too little insulin with the result that the body is unable to adequately metabolize sugar. Principal symptoms are elevated blood sugar, sugar in the urine, excessive urine production and increased food intake. Complications of diabetes if left untreated include low resistance to infections leading to a susceptibility to gangrene, cardiovascular and kidney disorders, disturbances in the electrolyte balance and eye disorders, some of which may lead to blindness.

A condition in which an individual experiences pain which persists beyond the expected time required for healing of an injury or after the expected course of an acute illness, usually with a duration of greater than six months. Chronic pain arises from a number of causes including invasion or compression syndromes due to cancer, neurological disorders such as neuralgia, phantom limb pain, nerve entrapment syndromes, spinal cord damage, muscular inflammation syndromes, and syndromes involving lesions in the thalamus.

Individuals who have serious medical conditions that have persisted over a long period of time or are subject to frequent recurrences, are treatable but rarely cured completely and require persistent self-management behaviors. Chronic illnesses may be life-long in duration and/or progressive in nature; and many are marked by sudden flare-ups that can be caused by stress or other factors. Medicine and other treatments can often help people with chronic illness lead a normal life, although many require long-term care.