Most of our senior loved ones prefer to age at their home. More than 95 percent of elderly adults want to stay in their own homes as long as they can, even when they require assistance with day-to-day chores. They feel safer and more convenient at home as they are surrounded by familiar conditions and memories.
Sons and daughters of elderly parents face the hard reality of having to decide whether they should become caregivers to the elderly parent aging at home, hire a professional caregiver, or move them to an assisted living facility. While advancement in medical equipment and technology has made it more feasible to benefit from care at home, staying at home is not the right choice for every senior.
There are some important differences between in-home care and care homes. But both of them offer a fundamental benefit – round-the-clock, long-term care with professional experts. This is what makes it so difficult to decide between the two. Let us explore the advantages and limitations of each of these living situations for elderly loved ones so that you can make an informed decision about the best option.
What Is an In-Home Caregiver?
One of the fastest growing services today, in-home caregiver service is offered by agencies that send professional caregivers to the senior’s home. Caregivers are suitable for those individuals who need continuous care which their friends and family members cannot provide but they want to age at home. Agencies provide a variety of services ranging from simple companionship to personal care and supervision.
In-home caregiver plans can include medical or health care services and non-medical services. The level of care availed decides the cost of care. The most common services offered by caregivers include supervision, companionship, housekeeping, medication reminders, shopping, transportation, errands, meal preparation, laundry, and personal care.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Home Care
The most important advantage of hiring a caregiver is that the elderly senior gets to age at home while living amidst friends, family, and surroundings they feel happy and secure with. They maintain their independence. They need not change anything about the way they live.
Here are some of the other benefits of in-home care with a caregiver:
- One-on-one care tailored to their needs and preferences
- Ability to choose the person they want to provide care
- Get comfortable with just one caregiver
- Depending on the complexity of care and the time of the care required, it can often be cheaper
- Various types of care services can be combined to lower the costs
Here are some of the disadvantages of hiring caregivers:
- The costs can be quite high when the senior needs 24/7 care
- Caregiver management and backup planning require family involvement
- Aging at home can lead to social isolation contributing to health problems like cognitive decline and depression
- The home requires modification as the senior would stay in the home
- Requires a spare room for the caregiver
What is a Care Home?
Care Homes are specialist residence facilities that provide round-the-clock assistance and care for the elderly. They offer a secure place for seniors to stay with somebody on hand all the time to attend emergencies.
Many care homes also provide additional medical attention if needed. People living in care homes often have their own bedrooms and bathrooms but share communal areas like dining rooms, lounges, gardens, and more with other members.
The staff provides meals, housekeeping, and assistance with daily needs like personal hygiene, dressing, and mobility. However, the number of staff available in the care home decides the level of one-on-one care the senior loved one receives.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Care Homes
While a care home can give peace of mind to the elderly loved one’s family as they get a secure and monitored environment to age in, it involves the decision to move out of the home where the person spent most years of life.
Care homes are advantageous and affordable for seniors who require continuous attention, assistance, and medical care and if the person is ready to move to another residence, it can be a wise decision.
Here are some of the advantages of care homes:
- 24/7 staff available for care
- Prepared meals are served
- Supervision of medication and healthcare
- Opportunities to socialize and interact
- No maintenance costs or household bills to deal with
- Housekeeping services
These are some of the disadvantages of care homes:
- Requires moving into a new residence
- Difficult to reverse in case the person’s well-being improves
- Restricted independence
- Negative perceptions in the society
- Higher focus on practical needs than emotional
- Quality of care depends on the staff members
- One-on-one care will not be consistent due to changes in staff
Caregiver Vs. Care Home – Tips to Choose
Even when you understand clearly how care homes and in-home care work, it may still not be an easy decision. Both these methods have their own pros and cons.
Deciding how your senior loved one ages is a very important step in life for both you and the loved one and you want to ensure you make the best choice. Here are some tips to make you more confident in making the decision:
Determine the Complexity of Care the Elderly Needs
Before deciding on anything, it is important to figure out the exact requirements of your loved one. When you understand these, you can easily compare them to the help available at the time. Make a list of everything your loved one needs help with on a daily, weekly, and monthly basis to get a clear picture of the care level required.
This will help you decide how much of this you, family members, and friends can provide and the additional help required. This would make your decision about in-home care or care home clear or at least be a helpful tool as you proceed.
Evaluate the Pros and Cons
Both in-home care and care homes provide some amazing benefits but both have their own limitations and disadvantages depending on the situation of your loved one. A comparison of the pros and cons can be helpful to an extent.
Find Alternatives
If your senior loved ones need a little help, you can consider other options like inviting friends and family to give care to the senior, taking the help of volunteers from religious communities who can prepare meals, and helping with driving and getting meals delivered to home.
If your loved one wants to age at home, you should ensure that the home is safe as falls are common. You can get some installations like grab bars in the bathroom and remove hazards from the place.
Get remote monitoring devices for monitoring and reminding the elderly about medication. Web-based tools allow communicating with caregivers and staying updated on the loved one’s schedules. You can also consider medical emergency devices like MedicSignal that not only allow reaching out for help in an emergency but also monitor the elderly user continuously to give peace of mind to caregivers and family members.
Although deciding between a caregiver and a care home can be often stressful and confusing, you have already taken a step towards making the right decision by learning about the two. We hope this guide helps you find the perfect care option for your loved one.
