Most nursing homes in the United States offer a mix of short-term and long-term care programs that sometimes overlap to meet the unique needs of their patients. According to the National Center for Assisted Living, nearly 29,000 nursing homes and assisted living facilities in America cater to a broad range of patients. Their clientele includes people with disabilities or suffering from a chronic condition, along with individuals who would rather have at-home personal care services than stay at an in-patient facility.
What Is Short-Term Care?
Short-term programs focus on achieving goals and milestones by helping seniors and other patients recover from illnesses, injuries, and surgeries. They often revolve around custodial care, which means patients no longer display signals of co-morbidity or disease after completing a multi-drug treatment program. Short-term care might last a few days up to a year.
Short-term care programs offer a mix of occupational, physical, and cognitive therapies that help patients return to living independently. Three types exist in many nursing homes.
Short-Term Rehabilitation
Nursing homes offer short-term rehabilitation programs to provide seniors with a restful environment while they recover from a medical event or severe illness. Nursing aides and caregivers help them with hygiene, dressing, and preparing meals. A physical therapist might also work with them to eliminate chronic pain through targeted exercise routines.
Respite Care
Respite care, also known as skilled nursing, helps family members take a temporary respite from caring for aging parents or relatives with disabilities. RNs and nursing care professionals will track their medications and deliver personal care at home or at an in-patient facility.
Adult Daycare
Adult daycare services allow centers to charge daily and hourly rates, so caregivers can attend meetings, run errands, and socialize with friends while their loved one relaxes in a supervised environment.
What Is Long-Term Senior Care?
Long-term senior care programs help seniors with progressive or chronic conditions cope with the demands of life. Some of them have Parkinson’s, Huntington’s, dementia, or have had previous strokes.
According to the American Health Care Association, only 14.3% of nursing homes have dementia units, and over 5.6 million seniors have the dreaded condition. You can find four types of long-term care facilities in the United States.
Assisted Living
Assisted living communities are medium-care facilities that care for independent seniors who require help with small tasks, such as tracking their medications or using the bathroom.
Independent Living
Independent living facilities offer low-level care for seniors. They are also called retirement communities, and while they have medical staff on standby, they do not cater to seniors with progressive ailments.
Nursing Homes
Nursing home care provides high-level care for seniors who require 24-hour monitoring.
Continuing Care Retirement Communities
Continuing care retirement communities combine the benefits of the three facilities above into one setting, separating seniors that require high-level medical attention from those who can live independently through property sectioning.
Contact Us Today for More Information
Contact the Breezy Hills Rehabilitation & Care Center today by emailing us at BHadmin@Breezyhillsrehab.com, and we will help you decide which short or long-term care setting is right for your loved one through a free consultation.
Breezy Hills Rehabilitation and Care Center provides proactive, sophisticated care to our beloved senior residents. Our dedicated and compassionate staff brings a unique combination of the highest quality of health care and technological innovation. We proudly serve Lakeland, Gibsonia, Kathleen, Socrum and surrounding areas in Central Florida.