The Difference between In-Home Care and a Nursing Home

While we all want to age in our homes, ideally, there comes a time when seniors and their loved ones need to seek outside help. This becomes a necessary step whether they want to take steps to move to a nursing home or age in place with home care.

These choices are not easy because no one wants to leave their homes, while some need access to medical services and care 24/7 and the socialization that nursing homes offer. Making such big decisions requires digging into countless questions and considerations before making a choice. You can explore these options in greater detail by visiting the DANS in-home care website, or other care facilities that offer similar services.

You should consider whether the beneficiary just needs someone to help part-time or full-time around the house with daily living activities like assistance with dealing with finances or bills: medication reminders, or just a companion.

Consider whether the beneficiary needs a great deal of medical assistance due to an onset of dementia or recovering from an injury. You should also take time to reflect and see if amenities like on-site health care, planned meals, or organized activities appeal to you.

Primary questions should revolve around the level of amenities you desire and deciding how much care they need to help you determine if in-home care or nursing home is the best option.

In-Home Care

In most cases, in-home care options range from 24/7 care to a few hours per week care. However, most beneficiaries get 44 hours of care or less per week. This type of caregiving, in most cases, comes from a palliative care or hospice service.

This is an ideal solution for seniors who want to age in place within their comfort. A primary home caregiver, like a homemaker or health aide, will come and stay as long as the senior needs then to provide any assistance with daily living activities like meal preparation, hygiene, medication reminders, transportation, general housekeeping, and other tasks or provide companion care.

However, in-home care can be a bit expensive in most situations because you deal with nursing professionals like physical therapists, nurses, doctors, occupational therapists, and others to provide essential services.

Seniors who prefer in-home care over being in nursing homes enjoy the freedom of being at home in their familiar surroundings. They will ensure a better quality of life and happiness with these options and still enjoy doctor visits.

You can hire a caregiver privately or through an agency. We recommend using agencies because they do the necessary legwork like running background checks, handling the financial aspects like calculating withholdings for taxes and caregiver payments, confirming their credentials, and finding qualified candidates.

Nursing Home

Nursing homes are more favorable options for seniors who need more basic care that can't be handled in a traditional home setting. Nursing homes are designed to give around-the-clock medical assistance and care for seniors in a residential setting.

Nursing homes have a caregiver that assists beneficiaries with their personal care needs, ADL's, cleaning, meals, laundry, mobility issues, and provide therapy or skilled medical care whenever needed.

Nursing homes are perfect for seniors who need full-time care. Nursing homes also offer regular in-house activities like games, crafts, and fitness, as well as outings for entertainment and shopping with transport. Seniors with late stages of Huntington's disease and Alzheimer's should consider nursing home facilities that offer advanced memory care services.