Written by Margaret Sellers for MobilityDeck
Nursing homes and assisted living facilities are 2 options when it comes to senior care and senior housing. But you may be wondering how they differ. The easiest way to explain the different options is that Nursing Homes are mainly caring facilities that provide housing, while Assisted Living is one of the senior housing options that provide a level of care.
In This Article
- Assisted Living Assists Seniors With Self-Care
- Nursing Homes Offer Medical Care
- What Do Assisted Living Facilities Provide?
- What Do Nursing Homes Offer?
- Final Thoughts
Assisted Living Assists Seniors With Self-Care
Many of the residents at assisted living facilities do not require constant supervision. Some of these facilities have their resident nurse and, in some cases, a health clinic on site. The focus on assisted living involves helping residents with DLA’s (daily living activities), such as taking medications, eating, dressing, and bathing. Emergency medical care is made available through standard channels and is easy to access for all the residents.
Assisted living venues are also not required to hire skilled nurses. The medical care levels are also different from what a nursing home provides.
Nursing Homes Offer Medical Care
The nursing homes that also go by the name of skilled nursing-care facilities are primarily seniors with severe and chronic medical needs. These types of patients include residents that have dementia and those that are confined to some kind of wheelchair or bed.
Most of the residents in nursing homes have mental health or physical issues that require constant attention and monitoring from skilled nursing professionals. This care is available 24/7.
At the same time, many patients stay in a nursing home for a few weeks or months to receive essential rehabilitative care following an incident such as a heart attack or a stroke. Around 25% of the patients in different nursing homes stay for 3 months or less.
What Do Assisted Living Facilities Provide?
Assisted living homes are the ideal solution for the vast majority of individuals. When a senior’s home is not a viable option any longer, an assisted living venue is often the next choice.