Home for the aged: How to choose the best one in Singapore

Choosing the best nursing home (or nursing home alternatives) for your elderly loved ones

As much as we don't like to age, it happens. As the body gets weaker, it may be prone to more health conditions with some affecting physiological or cognitive ability. When this happens to someone we care about, it's important to ensure that they receive the proper care and assistance they need to live a healthy and quality life.

Some families choose to provide care to their elderly family members themselves and that is admirable. But for others, others simply cannot provide the necessary care and attention their elderly loved ones needs, may it be due to circumstances or because they are not equipped to provide the required intensive medical care. In these instances, it is okay to ask for help and the place to turn to our senior care services in the home for the aged Singapore.

What is a senior home centre?

A senior home centre is a residential care facility dedicated to the elderly, particularly the ones who are unable to live independently. These seniors are the ones who have a higher level of need including those with physical disabilities, memory impairments, and other types of medical conditions that lessen their quality of life.

Each resident access to various services like daily meal service, dedicated nursing care, assistance with activities of daily living, engaging social activities, and many more. The following are the different kinds of senior homes:

Nursing home

Nursing homes are for elders who require intensive round the clock care. They have a more clinical type of setting and nurses are the ones who care for the seniors to ensure that every medical need is addressed properly.

The facilities and features included here are mostly integrated to provide quality healthcare service for the elderly.

Assisted Living

For seniors who can't live on their own but don't require the same level of care as those in nursing homes, assisted living Singapore is the place to be.

This is a shelter for the elderly where they can also get personal care and support. As a resident, they will have access to assistance with activities of daily living, transportation, daily meals, on-call nurses, fun activities and events, and others.

Independent Living

Retirees who do not need help with any basic self-care tasks might want to consider independent living for the elderly.

Independent seniors are uncomfortable with 24/7 nursing care and schedule in nursing homes and would much rather prefer to live in small communities with people just like them and only need assistance with more complex day-to-day tasks such as housekeeping, laundry, medication management, etc.

Memory Care

Dementia care is a senior home that provides shelter for elderly persons living with dementia or other forms of memory impairment. Personal care and assistance are provided for each resident. Memory Care also lays out planned activities, therapies, and other activities that are directed toward helping the regression of their disease.

Factors to consider before moving your elderly loved one into a senior care home

It will be a major adjustment for you and your elderly family member to move into a home for the aged. It's not going to be easy, both in terms of emotionality and practicality. But you have to realize that this is the best decision for the sake of their welfare.

To help you sort out things better, here are the factors to consider before moving your senior into his or her new home:

1. Consider the senior's physiological and mental needs

One of the major factors that convince family members to transfer their seniors into a senior care home is their physiological needs. Consider the following when you make your decision:

  • Are they bed-ridden and completely immobile?
  • Do they have a physical disability they have to undergo therapy for?
  • Do they need assistance with activities of daily living? (ex. feeding, dressing, bathing, toileting)

These factors can help you determine which senior care home can provide the appropriate level of attention and care to cater to their needs.

2. Consider the senior's social wellness

Keep in mind that moving into a residential care home is difficult because seniors will be living apart from their close family and friends to stay in a new environment with strangers.

Think about if they need full-time hands-on care or prefer to do things on their own. Think about whether or not they want to be near their friends. Whether this is a temporary set-up or not, you must determine how your ageing parent or family member is going to handle social interaction because this can affect their daily lives.

It is also important to allow your loved ones to weigh in with their preference. Ask your loved one whether they prefer to be in a bigger or a smaller community as this can help you in making the right decision.

3. Consider your financial capability

Check your finances. Entering your family member into a nursing home can be quite an investment. Regardless of the services and the type of room you would avail of, it's not going to be cheap.

Fortunately, the government offers various subsidies that lessen the load and enable low-income earners to put their loved ones into a senior care centre. There are also benefits for seniors in Singapore who require financial aid in accessing senior care services.

How to choose the best senior care home for your loved one

There are many homes for the aged options to choose from, which might get a little overwhelming. There are so many factors to consider. But the bottom line is that you want what's best for your ageing parent or family member. All you have to do is breathe in deeply and read each of these tips carefully to reach a properly thought decision:

Choose what your elderly loved ones want

What does your ageing parent want and need? As their children, you must make certain decisions for them that will make them happy in the end. Carefully consider the things that are important to you:

  • Does your family member need to have around-the-clock care?
  • Do they only require minimal assistance?
  • Do you want them checked by a doctor from time to time?

Most importantly, are your loved ones comfortable with having medical staff checking in on them regularly? Or would they prefer the privacy of their room and have medical personnel on call instead?

Discuss with family and friends

Nothing beats word-of-mouth marketing. Talk to your family members or close friends, co-workers, or fellow members of a group you're in and ask them if they can recommend a good senior care home.

Since you trust them and they care about you (and if they have elderly family members themselves), they can give you a good recommendation or they might have resources that they can refer to you.

Assess the location

Location is important because you could determine here if the residential care facility is accessible for you or not. If you want to see your loved one regularly, make sure that the senior care centre is close so you can drop by often.

Also, consider the accessibility of establishments such as a hospital, a market, and others like malls, parks, or churches (if your family is religious). This way, you can assure that your senior family member can get there safely since it's within a near distance.

Check the condition of the senior care centre

It's important to assess the condition of the senior care centre because it will be the place that your parent or family member will be staying at, may it be it is for the short term or a long term.

  • Is the facility modern and does it have state-of-the-art amenities?
  • Do the rooms have senior-friendly fittings?
  • Is there a garden or a space wide enough for your elderly loved one to walk around in?
  • Are the rooms homey enough?

Contact the nursing homes

Get in touch with your prospective senior care facilities and ask their staff important questions. You can call them or send them an email. Ask about their number of residents, what services and amenities they can provide, and find out about the admission requirements and the costs. It's important to gather all the information at the very start so you can decide more easily toward the end.

Visit the senior care facility

See the nursing home for yourself. It's different to see a senior care home with your own eyes. Meet with the nursing home (or whatever senior care facility it is you chose) director for them to give you a proper tour of your elderly loved one's new home. Be observant of how the staff and their team look after the other residents and search for any red flags.

Ask questions during the visit

Even if you have already asked questions before the visit, you need to ask more when you're there. There might be some observations that you pick up while touring around. Check if the facilities are clean and whether or not the caregiving staff is performing their duties well with the current residents (first impressions matter). If there's anything off, you can consult the director about it.

 

Looking for the best senior home and care services in Singapore?

When it comes to professional nursing care, medical assistance, and top-quality suites, you will never go wrong with Red Crowns home for the aged Singapore. We have an array of services, amenities, and programs that were carefully built to give the elderly community in Singapore the best quality of life. We also have a team of caregiving staff that's highly trained and skilled in caring for the elderly. We want to help ageing persons be able to enjoy the rest of their years.



Get in touch with us.

Learn more about Red Crowns. You may contact us for more information about our services and locations, get a quote or to schedule a tour.
+65 9800 5297
admin@redcrowns.co
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