Nursing Homes and Necessity - Has the Time Come?

No one welcomes the day that they have to start looking at nursing homes for themselves or a family member. But if an elderly parent has reached the point where living alone is impossible, this may be the best option for the future.

If you have an aging parent who is frail, forgets to eat, is accident prone or is physically unhealthy, full-time care might be the only viable. This is especially the case if the individual's family does not live close by. Sometimes a move to a home is the best thing for the person, as it will ensure that their needs will be met.

You want your elderly loved one to be well taken care of in every way. You want them to receive compassionate and qualified care from people who are skilled at their jobs and really care about the human side of the work they do. Before you start scouting out nursing homes in the area, your family member should have a thorough evaluation done. A geriatric assessment needs to be conducted by a doctor or nurse practitioner to evaluate the individual's mental and physical status.

It is important that the medical professional that does the evaluation is in-depth and as thorough as can be. In particular you want to know how well your family member can perform activities of daily living, such as getting up out of a chair without help, walking, eating and dressing themselves. The person's balance also needs to be checked, as does such things as signs of anxiety or depression, memory problems or any indications of Alzheimer's or dementia.

Identifying any physical or psychological problems that the person is living with can help with the planning stage of which facility would be best suited to the senior. It is important though to not let the person get lost in the planning. After all, this is their life so do not act as if they are not a part of their own future.

However, you might be able to put off the day when you have to start researching nursing homes if there are good local resources in your community from which to draw upon. For example, for a senior who is depressed and sits alone, an adult day program can provide the opportunity to get out of the house and talk with others.

A person who only needs help once in awhile or a couple of hours a day is different than a person who needs 24-hour care. If your parent falls into the former group, find out what your community has to offer. There should be a listing of local services in your area for companies that provide in-home nursing care. You should also research to find out if there are volunteer groups that arrange rides for older individuals to get to and from their appointments and to do their shopping. Check online, your telephone book or the local newspaper for the information you seek.