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5 Things You Must Know About Carehomes

1) Researching carehomes is important-It's crucial that carehomes in your area are well researched. The needs or the needs of your relative or friend who will enter a carehome need to be catered for adequately. The best place to research is online. Visit the carehome's website (most have websites these days). Also it's a good idea to search for the carehome in the search engines and particularly look for reviews (that don't appear to be sponsored or paid reviews). Review sites and consumer sites are extremely helpful for sifting the wheat from the chaff for all types of services. Research offline can also take the form of asking at the Doctors' or healthcare surgery and asking other healthcare professionals. These professionals often have 'hands on' experience of various carehomes through their care for the sick and elderly.

2)Visiting your proposed carehomes-Nothing can replace the 'feel' of a place and meeting staff and care home members in person. Try to visit three to four carehomes in your vicinity. Meet with the manager and discuss the home's schedule, amenities etc. Keep your eyes open to assess cleanliness in rooms and corridors. Take a good look at the garden, are residents encouraged to use outdoor areas? Is the care home easily accessible for those with mobility problems? An important part of a carehome's service is the food, is it fresh and nutritional? Also are the cultural needs of patients met e.g. do they provide areas for worship and allow celebration of festivals?

3)Funding-Make sure you've assessed all the funding options and fees relating to your proposed carehomes. Is the carehome only taking private fees or do they accept Government fees or grants. Also, are the fees charged by the carehome reasonable and can you afford them? Each carehome differs in their fees and costs, these need to be assessed. Ask yourself if top up fees will be needed to meet costs or additional costs of care. What are the carehome's additional costs? Asking questions can save you both time, money and anxiety later on.

4)Room Amenities-A resident in a carehome will find their room is a haven and a place where they spend a large part of their life. It's important therefore to look at the choices of room available in the carehome. Ask to see any proposed rooms. Are these well lit, are there alarms that are easily accessible for residents to contact staff? Also are bathrooms shared or ensuite? These days ensuite bathrooms are a great convenience and most carehomes provide these. It can be quite uncomfortable for an elderly person used to their independence to have to start sharing a bathroom with strangers. Also is the bed good quality, the furniture of a good standard and is there a TV, DVD player and other media available in the room. These things are all worth checking out before moving in.

5) As well as the room amenities it's important to have a look at the carehome's schedule. Are the residents kept occupied as part of a community or are they isolated and bored. Is there a person in charge of activities and is there a choice about taking part or not i.e. card evenings, sing alongs, day trips etc. With regard to scheduling are residents free to 'do their own thing' and is the schedule flexible enough to allow for this? Are visiting times long and welcoming or tight and restrictive? Can visitors eat with the residents or even stay overnight if needed i.e. in cases of serious ill health.

Don't be afraid to ask questions, It's a good sign that you're interested and care about the environment you or your relative or friend will be living in, it's also a good sign of a well run carehome that they'll be open to answering all your questions.