Reasons to Consider Home Care Instead of a Care Home

When a loved one begins to age, you have to consider all sorts of thing that you may not have thought about yet, such as what care you will get for them when they require it. Seeing a loved one begin to change as they age or as a disease like dementia takes hold can be extremely difficult to cope with, which is why it’s so essential that you have the right support system in place to help you.
 

Traditionally, care homes are what more people chose for their ageing loved ones, but today that has started to change. While care homes are developing and improving all the time, ensuring that they are able to offer an extremely high level of care, more people than ever before are choosing home care instead of residential care.
 

While a lot of people wanting to keep their loved ones living at home initially consider caring for them themselves, they soon realise how time-consuming and demanding providing this kind of care can be. Caring for a loved one can be an amazing thing to do, and is a great way to ensure that their later years are as comfortable and enjoyable as possible.
 

However, providing this kind of care can also take its toll especially when it is required 24 hours a day, seven days a week. There’s a lot of pressure that comes with providing care for a family member, which is why a lot of people choose to consider professional home care.
 

While residential care can work well as a care route, the fact is that home care can offer a very different approach to care, which is what some people prefer. Wondering if the cost of home care is something that it’s worthwhile considering? Below we have shared some of the reasons why home care can be highly beneficial and a great alternative to residential care.

 

More comfortable
 

We grow rather attached to our homes, which is why home care can be so beneficial. For older adults who aren’t able to live safely on their own, home care allows them to remain in their homes, in the place where they are comfortable and content, instead of having to move to an entirely new environment.
 

Moving to a new environment with new people can be extremely daunting for older adults and can make life rather stressful, which is another reason why home care can be such a good option. Studies have shown that seniors living with a health condition tend to do better and live for longer when being cared for in their own homes as this is where they are most comfortable.

 

No routine changes
 

We all have our own routines, the ways in which we like to spend our time, and the same goes for older adults. For some older adults, routine changes can be extremely stressful and upsetting, which is why remaining in their own homes, being able to stick to their own routines can be highly beneficial for them.
 

If an older adult is happy with the routine that they have, then they will not enjoy moving to a residential care environment where they may have little say over their routine. Whereas, when a home carer is used, their routine can be carefully catered to, to make life as enjoyable as possible for them.

 

A more reliable type of care
 

Another of the many benefits of having home care for an elderly person is the fact that the care received tends to be far more reliable. The fact is that in care environments like care homes, there are vast care teams who share tasks, which means that residents don’t have one set carer, they have all different carers looking after them. This means that the type of care received is unreliable, which can make the person feel uncomfortable and uncared about.
 

Whereas, having home care means that they get one-to-one, person-centred care every single day. You could choose to use the same two or three carers, depending on their specific needs, to ensure that they feel comfortable with the people caring for them and are getting a reliable, high-quality type of care. When you know exactly who will be looking after your loved one, you can check up on them and ensure that they are receiving the very best care possible.

 

Lots of support
 

Having home care means that you are providing your loved ones with high-quality support that they can count on. Studies have shown that when older people become unwell, being in their home, amongst the things (and people) that make them feel comfortable and content, they tend to heal more quickly. Carers can provide the ideal amount of care, changing dressings, giving medication and taking care of their every need.
 

What’s great about having a carer who comes and looks after your loved one in their own home is the fact that it allows you to offer support in addition to that of the carer. In a residential care facility you could only visit during visiting hours, whereas in their own home, you and relatives could visit whenever you wanted to and spend as much time with them as you like.

 

Helps to keep the family together
 

As we get older, we become more vulnerable, which is why being closer to our family is important. For your loved ones who are older, being sent to live in a residential care home can be terrifying, especially when it’s far from their family and home. Whereas, if you hire a home carer who can provide them with care in their home, you give them the support of their family and allow them to spend more time with them.
 

A lot of older people feel safer and less vulnerable to abuse when surrounded by their family, which can help to ensure that their quality of life is far higher. This is especially true when they feel a bond to their carer and they become a part of the extended family.

 

More cost-effective
 

Usually, home care actually works out cheaper than residential care, because there’s only the carer to pay for and not all of the other added extras that residential care homes often charge for*. Home carers charge far less than most care facilities, making them a much more affordable option for many people.
 

Being cared for at home, whether it's only day care two times a day or full time live-in-care, it offers so many benefits for older people and their family members, which is what makes it a great option to look into when considering the right care for your loved one.
 

*Check out this calculator on https://ukcareguide.co.uk/care-home-costs/.