Assisted Living vs. Skilled Nursing Care

Which is right for my loved one?

As our parents or elderly loved ones age, they may face greater challenges in performing the daily tasks that optimize their quality of life. That’s when it may be time to start looking at senior care options.

Changes in Senior Care

The senior care industry has experienced dramatic growth over the last decade, both in number of residents and options available. This presents a greater opportunity to find a community that best matches your loved one’s particular needs, but also requires more effort to assess those needs to find the best match of services to requirements.

Things to consider...

Your loved one may need Assisted Living...

If your loved one is still able to move about freely and is seeking a certain amount of independence, but needs help with some daily activities such as bathing, preparing meals, taking medication, or dressing themselves, an assisted living community may make sense. Residents of an assisted living community live in their own apartment and are able to come and go as they please, while receiving assistance as needed. They can dine with others in a dining room or make their own meals. Quality senior care living communities offer a variety of daily activities to choose from. At an assisted living community, your loved one will still have independence while getting the care and services they need to lead a fulfilling life.

Your loved one may need Memory Care...

If your loved one still has certain cognitive abilities, but is beginning to show signs of dementia that could result in isolation, frustration, or forgetting critical tasks such as taking medication, consider an assisted living community for memory care residents. These communities have caregivers who receive specialized training in memory care along with added security measures to manage residents’ safety.

Memory care programs can also include brain fitness exercises, memory-building practices, and specialized therapy for residents living with dementia. If a resident begins to show signs of greater physical needs, the staff will begin to talk to the family about making the transition to a skilled nursing community.

Your loved one may need Skilled Nursing...

When your loved one starts to require greater medical attention or is no longer able to function independently, it may be time to consider a skilled nursing community. Skilled nursing offers round-the-clock medical attention, much like a hospital. There is always a trained medical person on staff to administer medication, monitor patients with serious medical conditions, and provide assistance with medical emergencies.

If your loved has a chronic condition that requires regular monitoring, a skilled nursing community is probably your best option.

Aren't Nursing Homes all the same?

If your image of “nursing homes” is one of residents trapped inside a small room unable to exercise any free will, you’ll be pleased to know that senior living has evolved greatly over the last couple of decades.

Today’s communities have social activities and clubs, off-site excursions and more opportunity for interaction with other residents.  Newer skilled nursing environments allow residents their own private apartment as opposed to an institutionalized hospital room.