When it comes to senior care arrangements, it can take quite a bit of research to figure out which option fits best for your loved one’s needs. Research can become complicated when senior care terminologies get used interchangeably due to a lack of clarity.
The question then becomes, what are the different types of senior care available for your loved one.
We will help you break down some commonly used terms in senior care.
Long-Term Care Home
Also called a nursing home, a long-term care home is a place for seniors to stay who have difficulty looking after themselves. These types of care homes offer round-the-clock nursing and personal care to your loved ones. They also provide frequent assistance with day-to-day activities such as eating, bathing, grooming, etc., and on-site monitoring of your loved ones to ensure their health and safety.
Retirement Home
A retirement home has a home-like set-up where a community of seniors lives together in their suites. It is a privately paid residency specifically aimed at seniors who wish to live a flexible and independent lifestyle. A resident can also choose to have paid personalized support services when required.
Assisted Living
In this type of retirement home, your loved one will have their private suite or apartment and receive personal support services from trained staff. For instance, if your senior loved one has memory loss or dementia, an assisted living space will provide a live-in companion to care for their needs and safety.
Respite Care
If you are the primary caregiver for your family member, the constant caring activity can lead to long-term stress and compassion fatigue. A respite caregiver can help prevent the build-up of fatigue. They will temporarily take over the caregiving activity while you or the primary caregiver takes a break.
A trained caregiver can offer respite care for shorter durations, such as providing companionship to your loved one, taking them to an appointment, assisting with grooming needs, or for longer durations such as when you are on holiday or at a family function.
Respite care can be provided at the comfort of your own home, at a medical facility, or even at a retirement home or assisted living.
Hospice Care
This type of care refers to compassionate care offered to terminally ill people to live as comfortably as possible, with less or no pain and suffering. Hospice care, unlike palliative care, begins after all forms of treatment have stopped, and the person will not survive the illness. The patient may need round-the-clock assistance from a qualified nursing aide in this scenario.
At Affinity, we specialize in 24-hour senior care. Our caregivers can assist with daily tasks such as mobility, medication reminders, eating (including meal prep), exercising, and personal care (grooming and bathing). If you are looking for additional support to meet the changing needs of your family member, please reach out to us at: www.affinityseniorcare.com or call Affinity at 248-363-8430.