Meeting Your Loved One’s Long-Term Needs
For individuals who need assistance completing daily living activities like eating, bathing or driving, long-term care steps in and provides ongoing support.
There are different kinds of long-term care services available, including in-home care, assisted living facilities and nursing homes. The right care facility depends on the individual, as everyone’s needs vary. Let’s take a look at the types of care and what to look for.
Types of Long-Term Care
Each kind of long-term care is created for a population of individuals with very specific needs, here’s a look at the most commonly chosen options.
- Home care involves a healthcare provider or caregiver spending time in the home, assisting with self-care tasks along with housework and shopping.
- A supportive housing program allows seniors to live independently in an apartment while the staff remains on call to help with more demanding tasks like cleaning, shopping for groceries or cooking meals.
- Assisted living is typically a residential program that provides around-the-clock assistance. Meals are prepared and served by the staff. Bathing, dressing and toileting are all apart of an assisted living care program along with administering medication and basic health care.
- A nursing home provides long-term care to individuals with exceptional needs, like a physical or mental disability. While an assisted living community will primarily provide custodial care, residents in a nursing home will be provided with speech, physical and occupational therapies along with any rehabilitation services their medical condition might require.
Understand the Senior’s Unmet Needs
Individuals enter long-term care because their quality of life is suffering in their current living situation. They’re no longer able to meet their own needs and require extra support. For this reason, the right type of long-term care is the option that steps in with services that will meet those needs.
A healthcare provider is an excellent resource for determining exactly what a senior needs in their next season of life. While some may simply need help at home and transportation services, others may no longer be safe alone and require the 24/7 support of an assisted living facility.
Find Accessible and Supportive Care
While the senior’s needs certainly come first, the right long-term care will also be accessible and supportive for loved ones involved in the individual’s care. Whenever possible, find a facility that’s nearby to make visiting simple.
Look for a program that’s set up to support everyone involved. Are there regular meetings with a social worker or care providers? What about a support group helping loved ones navigate this challenging new season of life? These aspects of long-term care will be invaluable when challenges arise.
The pressure of finding the right long-term care for a loved can be stressful, so don’t be afraid to take all the time you need to find the right location. Tour facilities, look at online reviews and meet with staff members to learn about things like licensure and staff turnover until you feel comfortable with the choice you’ve made.
~ Here’s to Your Financial Health!
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