Senior Care Homes
(Don't you just love choices?)

Senior care homes are not the first choice of most seniors.  Most seniors prefer to stay and home for as long as possible.  Staying at home offers the best opportunity to keep living their lives normally.  They may decide to pay for regular professional care in their own home to assist with a variety of services such as cooking, shopping, cleaning or transportation needs, but they are still home.

Probably the most preferred way to keep a senior living in their own, or a family member’s, home is have care provided by a family member such as a son, daughter, or grandchild.  As attractive as it may be, this is not always possible.

And Why No Senior Care at Home?

Busy lives, hectic schedules, and pressing demands, often rob families of the ability to provide the personal, loving care they want for an aging relative.  This can create tension between what a family wants to provide for their loved one and what they feel they are able to provide.  This reality has created the need for senior care homes.

Senior care homes go by several different names: adult foster homes, adult family homes, care homes, or similar terms.  The homes typically have 6 or fewer residents and they provide lodging, usually one person per room, and three meals a day.  The homes are normally located in residential areas.

Many times medical personnel visit the home on a regular basis. 

What to Expect in Your New Home

Senior care homes usually provide a warm, family atmosphere, which is more easily done in a home than in the larger long-term care facilities.  Each resident can personalize their room with their own memorabilia.  Common areas such as dining room and living areas are shared by everyone.

Often, social gatherings and trips to area attractions are provided.  

The big question remains: How do you find the right senior care home for you?  While the answer is not difficult, it will take some time and research.

A good procedure is to first sit down and write down the services that are important to you.  Do they provide transportation?  How often?  What about medical emergencies?  Is there someone available who has medical training?  Is there a porch or veranda where you can spend time outdoors in good weather?

Food Choices?

What about meals?  Are they able to provide for special dietary needs?  During the day, are limited snack choices available?  What activities do they offer?  Besides TV, are there other options?  Do they offer activities that are gender specific?  What is the monthly cost?  What is included in the cost?

After you have a list of questions written down a next step might be to determine what senior care homes are available in your area.  Maybe you know someone who has experience or knowledge who could help your out. 

Once your have the addresses of several homes, the next thing you might do is do a drive-by.  How’s the neighborhood?  Well established and well maintained homes?  Quiet?  Convenient location?

If all questions to this point have been answered to your satisfaction, it’s time to take it a step further.  Arrange a visit or just decide to drop in.  Drop-ins can be disruptive to a senior care home so please be aware of this and make allowances for your “intrusion”.

The point is, you get an “unvarnished” look at how things really are in the home.  While it’s not particularly good for the home, it can be very help for you…and we’re talking about you, right?

Feel free at any time in your investigations, to walk away.  You owe them nothing.

Select Your Home!

At some time you will narrow your choices down to just a few.  How do you break the tie?  You may wish to ask to spend a day in the home and visit with the other seniors.  Feel free to ask them whatever you wish.  If you ask discreetly, they will probably give you the real “skinny” about living there.

After you’ve been a few places, you’ll begin to get a “feel” for things you want to have in your new home.  In the end, how you feel about a home will most likely have a great impact on your final decision of where you want to stay.

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