You’re never going to be fully prepared if the time comes for you to place mom or dad in a nursing home. The reality of it is though that it’s better to be prepared if and when that time should come. According to a recent study, half of older adults will spend at least one night in a nursing home during their lifetime. 

Yes, this is a sobering truth but don’t let it stress you out. Sure it should bring some urgency to your future plans and the possibility of having to make this difficult choice for your parents or loved one, but we are here to offer some guidance. 

When Will I Know if My Loved One Needs to be Living in a Nursing Home? 

This is a valid question for everyone. How will you know if mom or dad needs around-the-clock care? Here are some questions to help provide a more clear direction: 

Pin-pointing some of these questions will bring some relief at least to know exactly what care options you need to explore. It’s never easy, but the first steps are always the hardest.

The 7 Things You Should Know When Looking For Nursing Home Options  

We know this can be a challenge. We see it and help people with this ever-important decision every single day, but be confident that we will be with you every step of the way. Your family is important to you which means they are important to us, as well as their future care and well-being. =

Where is The Nursing Home Located? 

Location is such an important part of the decision-making process because even if skilled nursing facilities check all of the other boxes if it’s not a realistic location it just won’t work. Think about in-person visits and the length of time it takes to get to the location. Is it drivable or would you have to fly?

These types of things matter in the end, especially to family who may or may not be feeling isolated. You need to ask yourself if the location and proximity to other family members is a priority. 

What is The Staff Turnover? 

This may not seem like a big deal but think about the consistency of the care that your family and loved ones would be receiving day to day. People genuinely feel comfortable with routine and with familiarity. If you are looking into nursing homes that have a high turnover rate among staff members, there’s a strong chance your family will not be receiving the consistent care they need and deserve. 

Stability inside of nursing homes is just as important as the individuals providing the care. People who are there for long periods of time get the chance to know each resident and can even recognize areas of concern before they become real problems. A skilled nurse and caregiver who can anticipate the needs of senior care residents is a priceless asset to convalescent homes. Plus, the time that they get to spend with each resident is also important and shouldn’t be overlooked. 

What Services are Offered at The Nursing Home? 

At StoneBridge we offer a variety of services for our residents, so no matter what stage of life or independence they may be in, we have them covered. If you’re looking strictly for nursing homes, we offer skilled nursing care for residents who need 24/7 care and support. Our skilled nursing care, long term care, respite care, and hospice care services provide families with options that best fit their needs. The quality that our professional caregivers provide keeps our residents happy and healthy every single day. 

You need to be looking for nursing homes that can provide the services and options you need, and one that can do it with excellence because your family deserves it. If a nursing home facility doesn’t offer a reliable skilled nursing service for its seniors, then that is a red flag. Trusting the life of a loved one in another’s hands is not an easy decision and should be weighed carefully.

What is The Reputation? 

If there are nursing homes that have bad reputations, they won’t be able to hide them. Utilize your research skills and do some digging to figure out how reputable of a place is. Ask the staff members honestly for their opinions. Read through reviews online. These are good places to start. Take a tour of the facility itself and trust your instincts on how it is operating and how it makes you feel. These types of on-site visits cannot be overstated. Just because nursing homes across the country are caring for seniors doesn’t make them automatically qualified to care for yours. 

What is The Cost of Nursing Homes? 

Every facility is going to be different when it comes to cost, but this is a necessary piece of information to know before deciding on a nursing facility. It can be stressful to think about budgeting for monthly care, but knowing what you can spend and where you can start is key. The more services and amenities a senior facility provides, typically the cost goes up, but here are some affordable ways to look at taking care of those expenses. 

Do You Provide Special Care for People with Dementia? 

Having one who needs help with memory care or who may be in the early stages of dementia, is an important question when looking at nursing homes. This is a specialized level of care that requires certified professionals who are experts and experienced in senior care. 

At StoneBridge, we provide this level of memory care and work hard to ensure that each resident’s daily lives are enriched and that they achieve the highest level of cognitive function. 

Our therapies include a wide variety of care from different areas like nutrition, stimulation, relaxation, spirituality, exercise, creative expression, and medical management. We understand how hard it is to put the care of your loved one in someone else’s hands, but we assure you at each StoneBridge Senior Living facility we are up to the challenge.

What is The Resident to Nurse Ratio? 

This is a very important question when considering nursing homes. The number of staff members, specifically registered nurses to residents, if inadequate, can negatively impact all residents in nursing homes. There are different types of staff members within nursing homes across the country which include positions such as direct care staff, registered nurses, and certified nursing assistants. 

The competencies of such staff members are required to ensure resident safety and maintain the highest standards of skilled nursing care and cleanliness throughout these nursing homes. The higher the nursing staff number directly relates to the higher quality of care for residents in nursing homes across the country.

Researching Nursing Homes In Your Area For Long Term Senior Care

Unless there are early warning signs families see that point to the obvious fact that their health is declining, often the decision to place mom or dad in a nursing home comes suddenly. These rapid timelines and changes make decision-making that much harder, but that doesn’t mean you should make a hasty decision. Selecting the right skilled nursing environment is important.

Being probably one of the most important decisions in your life, you owe it to yourself and them to make the best-informed decision you can possibly make. So, where should you start? 

Taking into consideration all of the seven things you should know before choosing a nursing home that we’ve mentioned above, there are also other possible questions you should consider. 

1. Does my elderly parent show any signs of regaining independence? 
2. Do the communities I’m researching allow individuals to move fluidly between various levels of care such as assisted living? 
3. What are the costs between the various levels of care should we need to make a change at any time? 
4. Does insurance cover the levels of care my parents may need now or in the future such as assisted living or rehabilitation therapy?  

Researching Nursing Homes In Your Area For Short Term Senior Care

When you think of senior housing, you often think of longer and more permanent residency for seniors. That is not always the case. Sometimes nursing homes provide shorter stays for individuals who need to recover from surgery or need short-term rehabilitation services. If this is the case, there are a few different questions you could ask to go along with the ones we’ve already mentioned. 

1. Approximately how long does mom or dad need support? 
2. Do the communities I’m looking at provide certified pharmaceutical and medical services? 
3. Are the communities equipped to handle rehabilitation services? 
4. Is there a minimum amount of days a senior resident must stay?
5. Does my insurance cover the care that they are in need of now or in the future such as assisted living?  

Services and Amenities Matter For Seniors

The types of communities in your search most likely have a list of amenities that they claim to provide within their care center. Don’t overlook the importance of these to the quality of home life that the average resident would receive.

At your area StoneBridge Senior Living facility, we offer a wide range of special amenities for our seniors, and we’re proud to provide the best home environment on a daily basis. These amenities help seniors feel safe, protected, and loved in a way that no other senior living facility can match

Nutrition

We offer a well-balanced menu of healthy and nutritious food for each resident, and some seniors can enjoy restaurant-style dining.

Rehabilitation & Physical Assistance

Through our professional care, we provide physical therapy, occupational therapy and speech therapy, and these are most helpful for those who may suffer a stroke or have other underlying issues.

Compassionate Health Service

Hospice and respite care are areas where we can support family members who need help and assistance with short-term living in our communities.

Welcoming Environment

We provide daily activities and enrichment programs for our seniors living within all of our StoneBridge neighborhoods. We also ensure our communities have gorgeous outdoor and indoor spaces for gathering across the board. These activities help provide a high quality of life for all residents and if you’d like more information we’d be happy to provide it in more detail.

Emergency Assistance

We have a professional medical staff that provides high-quality medical care on call 24/7 plus a 24 hr. emergency call system in place to ensure safe monitoring.

Local Transportation

For convenience and when needed, we provide transportation for local medical appointments for everyone.

Convenient Residency Options

There are no yearly leases or monthly buy-ins because we understand the need for flexibility where it matters most.

Making Your Final Decision On A Care Facility 

A lot goes into these decisions and they should never be taken lightly, but that’s why at StoneBridge Senior Living we want to help make it the easiest decision you can make. Our levels of care provide everything you should need from our memory care to our rehabilitation services and everything in between. 

We are experts in the senior living health industry and you can count on receiving nothing but excellent service from our certified staff as soon as you walk through the doors to your new home. Senior living is important to us and we hope you would consider letting our family care for yours.