Senior Care Homes Why They Might Be Right For Your Loved Ones

 

Taking care of the elderly is hard work. Many patients have very specific and often extensive needs. When it comes to elder care, expert help goes a long way. Whether a senior is placed in a living community or younger relatives elect for local senior in home care, it is important to work with the right elderly care experts.

If someone is suffering from memory problems or other health conditions, like say diabetes, it’s especially important to ensure that they have professionals helping out. It’s easy for patients to get confused or to forget to take their medicines. This could lead to serious medical complications. At-home senior care is designed for older adults who need help at home but who still want to live independently.

Not sure what resources are available? It’s smart for folks to check hometown health plans, communities, and other resources. It’s possible that local authorities or social services can provide some degree of assistance. They may also be able to provide senior helpers references or may recommend a center for elder care and more. Anyone who has questions should speak with medical and elderly care experts as they can provide insights.

Eventually, everyone grows older. But there’s a difference between growing older as everyone does and experiencing a more serious physical and mental deterioration. While everyone gets older, not everyone is capable of caring for themselves. There are a variety of reasons why an older person might not be able to care for themselves anymore. They could be suffering from a physical disability of some kind, like blindness, deafness, or a crippling disability that leaves a person in a wheelchair. While a younger person could learn to care for themselves on their own with such disabilities, an older person is already at a disadvantage. However, much more commonly, older people often suffer from some kind of dementia or Alzheimer’s Disease. It’s said that 42% of nursing home patients suffer from some sort dementia. Yes, we’ve mentioned them: senior living facilities. If your parent can no longer live on their own, your first impulse may be to move in with them or move them in with you. But many people find themselves choosing senior living facilities for their loved ones at the end of the day. Why? Because they’ve discovered that senior homes are better for their loved ones than living on their own. Assisted living for the elderly is probably very different from what you might imagine. Let’s look into what senior living facilities are really like, and for that matter how you can find the right one for your parent.

Senior Living Facilities: The Reality

It’s easy for people to have misconceptions about senior living facilities. This is in part because of rumors being spread about assisted living facilities, and partly because people naturally feel guilty about not living with their loved ones when they’re too sick or elderly to care for themselves. Living with your loved one isn’t necessarily the best choice for you for a number of reasons that we’ll address later. But an assisted living home is a good option for many reasons, with many people realizing this after visiting them. At its most basic, this type of home provides 24 hour care for people in need. Usually, those who live in such homes are very elderly, disabled, or terminally ill. They’re no longer known as nursing homes, but rather care homes as of 2002. These homes give care through medical professionals, and usually have an occupancy of about 86% — they aren’t meant to be overloaded by any means, and a good home never will be. These homes aren’t simply for the elderly, but for anyone who needs 24 hour care for the long term, with the average stay being 835 days.

Senior Care Homes: Who’s Staying In Them?

As mentioned above, a variety of people stay in care homes, and they aren’t all seniors. On average, women are about three times as likely to stay in senior living facilities compared to men. The reality is that women tend to outlive men, which leaves widows alone and in need of care after their husbands die. Often, those living in senior care homes suffer from some form of dementia. This means it’s progressive, leaving them at various states of lucidity. As such, many in care homes can still do some basic tasks for themselves. Care homes are able to give them the respect they need, while still protecting and assisting them. This, among the other reasons we’ll look at, is why care homes are often better options than care from relatives.

Choosing A Care Home For Your Parent: Why It Could Be The Right Decision

It’s not easy to make a decision about senior care. But as much as you love a person, it may be better to let medical professionals and professional caretakers help them in their twilight years. You can still visit, while maintaining your job and personal life. Through the balance that a care home provides, everyone is happy, everyone is cared for, and families are able to stick together in a healthy way.