Comprehensive Guide To Understand Skilled Nursing
What’s The Difference Between Skilled Nursing, Assisted Living & Nursing Homes?
It’s common for people to use terms like “nursing homes“, “skilled nursing care,” and “assisted living” interchangeably, but they all refer to different things.
Nursing homes refer to buildings where skilled nursing care or assisted living services are provided.
Assisted living is targeted toward seniors that need some daily assistance, but don’t require constant nursing care. Staff provides assistance with activities of daily living (ADL), which could include grooming, getting in and out of bed, eating, and medication reminders.
Skilled nursing care describes the care that must be provided by licensed nurses. This type of care is regulated by the U.S. Department of Health and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. It’s typically provided in nursing homes, hospitals, Life Plan Communities, assisted living facilities, and other facilities with the proper certification. To receive certification, facilities need to meet specific requirements. Facilities may be inspected to confirm that all requirements are being fulfilled.
The Different Kinds Of Skilled Nursing Care
Many health conditions, including surgery, strokes, and treatment for heart, respiratory, and kidney conditions require patients to receive rehabilitative care after they leave the hospital. This is something that a skilled nursing facility can provide. If occupation and physical therapy are prescribed by a physician, this type of skilled nursing care will be covered by Medicare. Other services, including medication and social services, should also be required. For coverage, the skilled nursing facility must be Medicare-certified.
Physical Therapy: Following hospitalization, surgery, or illness, a team will build a rehabilitative care plan to help to patient achieve the best possible outcome.
Occupational Therapy: Therapeutic assistance, such as coordination and memory exercises, that are designed to help patients adjust to physical and social environments.
Speech Therapy: Treatment to address issues with communication and swallowing. A plan is developed by speech and language pathologists to improve patient outcomes. This could include dietary changes, new strategies for communication, or treatment to improve language abilities.
Skilled nursing facilities are able to provide many types of services and care, including physical and occupational therapy, speech therapy, intravenous (IV) therapy, injections, wound care, and regular monitoring of vital signs.
The staff at a skilled nursing facility includes:
- Registered Nurses (RNs)
- Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs)
- Licensed Vocational Nurses (LVNs)
- Audiologists
- Speech/Language Pathologists
- Medical directors
Facilities also have transfer agreements with local hospitals so that residents can receive emergency care when needed.
Assisting Hands Provides High-Quality Care
At Assisting Hands, we believe that our clients deserve reliable care and support. We’re dedicated to all our residents and want to ensure they thrive. Our philosophy is to treat residents the way that we would want to be treated. That’s why we hire skilled, compassionate professionals that we can trust to give residents the quality care that they deserve.
Get in touch with us today if you need caregiving help with your elderly parents. Visit our blog for more exciting articles about senior care in Houston.
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