The help you need with bathing, eating, and getting dressed is very different from the help you need after a stroke. Nursing homes are where people go when they need a lot of help with non-medical, day-to-day tasks.
On the other hand, people may get skilled nursing when they need medical care, such as when they are recovering from a disease. But if you look into nursing homes for a little while, you’ll see that they’re often called skilled nursing facilities, or SNFs for short.
This term is often different from what it seems. You may have also heard about skilled nursing at home, which makes things even more complicated. Today, Nova Home Health Care will give a detailed explanation that should help you understand what’s happening. Check out this post for more details!
Skilled Nursing
Skilled nursing is a top care level requiring more training and certification. Skilled nursing care must be given by or directly supervised by licensed health professionals, such as registered nurses (RNs), licensed practical nurses (LPNs), speech-language pathologists, and physical and occupational therapists.
Skilled nursing services include physical, occupational, and speech therapy, wound care, intravenous (IV) therapy, injections, catheter care, continuous monitoring of medical signs, and medical equipment to support the patient’s care needs and monitoring of vital signs and medical equipment.
It’s helpful to remember that skilled nursing is just a name for the kind of service given. So, both skilled nursing facilities and nursing homes offer professional nursing care. As part of home health services, it can also be given to seniors in their own homes.
The Place For a Skilled Nursing Care
A skilled nursing facility (SNF) is a place where people can get medical and rehabilitation care while staying there. They are often used to help people who have been in the hospital because of an accident, serious illness, or surgery get back to doing things like bathing, dressing, cooking, personal hygiene, walking, and getting into and out of a bed or chair.
It’s important to remember that needing skilled nursing services doesn’t mean you have to stay in an SNF. Skilled nursing can be given in many places, including a senior’s private home.
Choosing where to get skilled nursing care will depend on several things, such as where you live and whether you have someone at home who can help you. In contrast, you get better, how bad your illness is, and what kind of rehab services you need.
Nursing Home
In short, nursing homes are places where seniors can live who are healthy but can’t be cared for at home because they have chronic conditions or can’t move around. They are places where people can get the health care they need to stay healthy.
Most people think of moving into a nursing home as a more permanent move than staying in a skilled nursing facility for a short time to get better.
Nursing homes offer medical care and help with daily tasks called “custodial care.” They also have a schedule of activities to get people involved and build a sense of community.
Skilled Nursing Facility vs. Nursing Home?
The most significant difference is that an SNF gives more specialized care than a hospital. Nursing homes are set up to provide more general maintenance, which only sometimes requires a higher level of training or certification.
Staff at places that provide good care will, of course, have some professional training. But nursing homes can hire people with the skills and certifications that qualify them as “skilled nurses” so they can give general care and keep an eye on their health.
In other words, a nursing home can hire skilled specialists if it wants to. Still, an SNF must always hire professional specialists. Without the advanced training that an SNF requires, nursing homes are often less able to help people recover from a sudden illness or regain lost functions after a stay in the hospital.
Specialized services like physical rehab, cardiac care, pulmonary rehab, wound care, speech therapy, and recovery after a stroke are likely unavailable in a nursing home.
These include help with activities of daily living (like bathing, eating, etc.), dialysis, medication management, blood sugar testing, and insulin injections.
Again, the difference is that these services are done in nursing homes, where the senior lives full-time. In contrast, they are done in SNFs, which are more medically intensive and short-term.
Which is Better?
Your loved one will need a doctor’s order to get care from a skilled nursing facility or home. Similar to a prescription, this order shows your loved one’s medical needs and proves that they meet state requirements for admission to a nursing home or skilled nursing facility.
Once a doctor tells you what level of care you need and how long you should stay, you can usually choose from the skilled nursing services or nursing homes in your area. As you consider your options:
- Find the best match. Visit each place you’re thinking about and ask questions about the care plans, services, amenities, and staffing.
- Consider costs. The cost of care at both types of facilities will depend on the needs of your loved one and where you live. But skilled nursing and care in a nursing home tend to cost more than other types of care.
- Find out how to pay for care. Medicare can help you pay for short-term care; if you qualify, Medicaid or benefits for veterans can help you pay for long-term care.
Pay a Visit Today
Nova Home Health Care is one of the best and ideal choices for senior care. Let us help you deal with your problems and get the best services for your loved ones. Nova Home Health Care is the best-rated in-home health care service in Fairfax.
No one else in the area gives as much care at home as we do for the elderly, those in recovery, and the disabled. You can’t go wrong with Nova HHC if you want a higher level of care for yourself, rehabilitation after surgery, or better care options for a loved one’s independence and quality of life.
We offer personalized, high-quality services made just for you by a hand-picked, highly-trained caregiver who is a good fit for your family and your needs. We respond quickly and on time 24 hours a day, so all patient and client referrals are taken care of immediately, and services can start on time.
We value honesty, integrity, respect, and dependability in everything we do, and we’re proud that our clients and staff can talk to each other openly and clearly. Contact us today at 703-831-1111 for more details!
