Top tips on choosing right care home
The key criteria for choosing the right home
1. Take as much time as you can
Choosing the right care home is a difficult, often emotional and stressful task and is often undertaken when there is not a huge amount of time to make the right decision
It is critical, however to take as much time as you can to ensure the right home for your parent. After all, consider how much time you put into choosing your own home and that was without important care and support being needed
The same amount of time and consideration should be given to looking at a care home where your parent might potentially end their days
2. Decide which type of home you need for your parent
There are four basic types of care home:
- Basic care home, which provides meals and accommodation
- Care home with 24 hour state registered nursing facilities
- Care home specifically for dementia sufferers
- Registered care home, combining general and nursing care
3. Talk to your parent if you can
When it comes to the time that your parent needs a care home, try to talk to them about what they would ideally like
If your parent is not well enough for this conversation, or is unable to communicate, discuss it with all your close relatives who know your parent well
Ask them what the most important things to them are about the care home and what they would like the staff to know about them to help them care for them in the best way. In my own mother’s case, she wanted to make sure none of the staff patronised her in any way
Ask them what help they would like settling in. Would they like to be left alone to find their bearings, or get someone to check on them
This person-centred approach will help you choose the best home for your parent
4. Decide where you need the home to be
Think about the distances you and possibly your parent’s spouse may need to travel to visit the home
How far can you go to and how often?
In my case, my father had a prostrate problem and could not spend more than ten minutes in the car, so that limited our choice
5. What access do you need?
Many homes are in adapted buildings and even if they say they can offer a ground floor room, there can be steps into the lounge, dining room etc.
If your parent needs completely level access, make sure the home can provide this
6. What bathroom facilities does your parent require?
My mum hated the idea of sharing a toilet
If this is an issue, check if the home has ensuite facilities. Many have ensuite toilet and sink facilities, even if they do not have full ensuite bathrooms, which can be more expensive
7. What size of home is right for your parent?
Some homes are very large and this can have its advantages, such as better entertainment facilities and a wider social circle
If your parent is quiet and shy, however, a large environment may not suit them at all and they may be better in a much smaller home
8. What other factors are important to your parent?
Do they want access to a garden? In my mum’s case, a garden was very important, as she loved to be outside and enjoying the fresh air and flowers
Do they need a pet-friendly home? Many older people are inseparable from their cats and dogs and want to take them with them
Once you’ve established all the criteria, how can you find a suitable home?
The best way to find homes within your chosen area is to go to the Quality Care website (CQC)
On the site, you can input your postcode and they type of home you are looking for and it will give you the results
When you have shortlisted the homes which meet your criteria, go to visit them
Visit unannounced. That way the home cannot prepare and you find them as they really are
You can consider visiting a mealtimes. The staff will be busier, but you can see how they interact with the residents at key mealtimes
See if the staff are engaging with the residents generally. It’s not enough for them to be very efficient and bustle about. Are they talking to the older people?
Talk to the residents and ask them about the home and how they like it, the meals, rooms, staff and so on
Key questions to ask the home
- What do they do is a resident runs out of money to pay? Many homes will not keep people on at social service rates. You need to think about the long-term cost. The minimum length of time as a general rule should be 5 years, but it could be less, or a great deal longer
- How do they handle complaints? Do they have a residents’ and /or a relatives’ committee? You would hope the home say they welcome complaints and feedback and do their best to address it. Some may also say they have a process for involving residents and their families in the running of the home. Others may be defensive if you ask this question
- What happens if your parent needs more intensive care? Most homes try to keep their residents until the end, but you must ask this question in case they do not have this policy, or if they feel very ill residents take up too much resource at the expense of other residents
- How do they handle medication? My mum wanted to be able to be in control of her own medication, but how do the home check they have taken it? If a home is honest, they will say that very often they cannot monitor this unless your parent is in a fulltime nursing home
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Chris Moon-Willems is a published author, qualified and registered social worker and owner of Relative Matters, an elderly care consultancy. She is a respected voice for older people and those responsible for their welfare, based on her extensive social care and NHS experience and personal experience of caring for her elderly parents. Having been approached by a publisher, Chris wrote her book, Relative Matters-The essential guide to finding your way around the care system for older people, which is currently available on Amazon. Chris has appeared on TV, been interviewed on national and local radio and is an accomplished public speaker. Find out more about Chris by visiting her website www.relativematters.org
