There are many reasons why a loved one might require the assistance of a convalescent home. For instance, some elderly folks receive a nursing home recommendation after they are hospitalized. But regardless of why you believe your loved one should be under the care of professionals at a nursing home, your reasoning will be unique to your situation.
In many cases, long-term care starts at home, whether family members have turned into more focused caregivers or home health aides have been hired to assist your loved one. You might even be utilizing a combination of the two.
However, once senior home care is no longer sufficient, it could be time to turn to the experts. As your loved one’s needs become more and more difficult to meet on your own, familiarizing yourself with the many different kinds of facilities is key.
What do nursing home facilities typically offer?
Not all facilities offer the same perks, but at a bare minimum, a nursing home facility should provide housing and housekeeping. It’s even better if nursing homes provide personal care assistance and medical services. If your loved one is dealing with a health-related matter, like dementia or a nerve condition, seek out options that offer special programs for those situations.
Types of nursing home options
There are many different types of nursing homes that you should explore:
- Active adult communities.
- Assisted living facilities.
- Board and care homes.
- Continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs).
- Independent living communities.
- Medical foster care.
- Memory care services.
- Neighborhood group homes.
- Nursing facilities.
- Residential facilities.
When deciding which type of nursing home is right for your loved one, consider their current level of independence. Can they care for themselves, or do they need assistance more often than not? Would your loved one want to live with other people and share a room with a roommate?
If not, an individual room would be more suitable than a shared space like group homes or assistance-focused neighborhoods. You know your loved one more than anyone, so reflect on what you believe they would prefer and go from there.
What to think about when exploring your nursing home options
High-end assisted living has amassed a lot of popularity over the years. As a service that has seemingly exploded in frequency, this type of assisted living offers white-glove services, going so far as to have benefits like a concierge, car services, built-in swimming pools, spas, gyms, and yoga studios for its residents. Places like this often set up activities like cruises and road trips for those who reside in their facilities.
As amazing as all these benefits sound, paying for long-term care is something to think about very seriously. It’s also imperative that you determine the quality of care that your loved one needs while weighing that determination with the abilities of nursing homes you’re heavily considering.
Both of these details can make the process of finding a nursing home more challenging than ever. This is especially true in terms of finances because payment is not only a contributing factor but often a major limiting factor in the process of making long-term care choices.
For many families, assisted living facilities and CCRCs are so expensive that they aren’t even options on the table. And it’s understandable because nursing care can be unimaginably costly. Furthermore, determining whether or not a specific nursing home takes Medicaid as a form of payment can be difficult.
Also, while weighing your options, keep the staffing situation of nursing homes in mind. Staff shortages are frequently straining the ability of facilities to provide care on a consistent basis, so take some time to compare nursing homes in your area using the Medicare-backed tool called Nursing Home Compare.
Reach out to your local area agency on aging or nearby social service agency for even more support. An ombudsman program can put you in contact with federal advocacy that is dedicated to protecting people — like your loved one — who live or plan to reside in long-term facilities.
Last but not least, it’s never a bad idea to stop by nursing home locations and take a guided tour of the residence. Converse kindly with residents at the facilities and ask them how they feel about the place they now call home. At the end of the day, trust your intuition, and if your loved one has the capacity to explore nursing home options with you, let them be involved in the process.
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