Assisted Living Vs. Total Care: How Your Elderly Loved One's Needs Are Assessed And Provided For

Health & Medical Blog

Assisted living provides nursing care that includes medication administration to housekeeping, if your elderly parent still lives at home. Total care means that, regardless of the level of his or her mobility, your elderly parent needs around the clock care. There are many other differences between these two types of nursing care and how they are assessed.

Assisted Living vs. Total Care

Assisted living facilities and nurses provide extra help to elderly adults who are still cognizant of who they are and of their surroundings. These residents or patients are able to make choices for themselves but may not be able to clean up after themselves or safely and regularly bathe themselves. Nurses provide care to keep residents healthy and clean and keep their living space safe and free of anything that could affect residents' health. With total care facilities, residents have become patients because they can no longer do much of anything for themselves, including use the toilet and dress themselves.

The Assessment

When you decide to get help for your parent(s), a nursing agency or assisted living facility will require an assessment. The first part of every assessment is usually medical-- any special health needs or dietary considerations that could impact the decision for assistance. A family account from you is typically the next part, and this clarifies your concerns and your expectations for nursing staff in an assisted living situation. The final part of an assessment looks at your elderly parent's physical capacity to move and care for him/herself, as well as any potential dangers, e.g., wandering risk.

Determining Appropriate Level of Care

Your intentions with regards to keeping your aged parent at home and independent are good, but there are certain factors that may make that impossible. Advanced dementia and wandering both make it too dangerous to provide care at home, and some assisted living facilities will not allow residents with these issues to live in their buildings. At this point, a nursing home or facility is better equipped to provide care. 

Selecting the Facility or Nursing Agency 

Once you have established the level of care your elderly parent needs, you can hire the nursing staff for in-home assisted living or begin the moving process for your parent. If your parent is able to live in an assisted living apartments, there are many more benefits to help him or her stay active and cognizant than there would be if he or she remained in his or her home. However, your parent has the right to choose to stay in his or her home or move to such a facility, and you will need to talk to him or her about this decision before touring facilities or entertaining interviews with nursing staff. To learn more about assisted living, visit Queen Anne Manor Senior Living.

Share

22 March 2015

Allergy Relief: You Have More Options Than You Think

As a child, I used to spend my days roaming through the woods. I climbed trees, smelled the flowers, and laid in the grass looking at the clouds. My love for nature continued through my teen years, but when I turned 23, I began to sneeze whenever I left my home. I could no longer enjoy my outdoor hikes and I started taking antihistamines so I could at least open my windows on warm days. My allergies got worse though and I met with an allergist who completed a variety of skin tests. I started receiving allergy shots and my allergist taught me about natural cleaning processes and sinus rinses. The injections and natural treatments improved my quality of life greatly. Even if you do not want to start allergy injections, you have a variety of options that can lessen your symptoms, and you should learn what these options are.