Choosing a care home for your loved one can feel like a heavy burden. There are a lot of factors to consider. To help lift the weight a little, we’ve put together 10 key tips to help you collect your thoughts and make a choice you feel comfortable with.
So, stick with Runwood Homes to learn more, or to find a highly rated care home, call them now on 0800 254 5996.
Top 10 Tips for Choosing the Right Care Home
1. Assess Care Needs
When finding a care home, a good place to start is by assessing your loved one’s needs. By that, we mean their medical and health requirements such as whether they need dementia care for example, but also any other preferences or quality of life priorities. That could be anything from the ability to practice their religion, or take part in specific activities they enjoy.
2. Research and Shortlist Options
Before you start booking visits, spend a little time doing online research. Read reviews, recall any word-of-mouth recommendations you may have had and look at CQC (Care Quality Commission) reports. Use these to make a shortlist of homes you’d like to visit in person.
3. Visit in Person
When it comes to how to choose a care home, one of the most informative steps you can take is to visit in person. This allows you to see the facilities first-hand and observe how residents are treated. You can look at any outdoor areas and recreational spaces. It may even be worth making written notes as you go so that you can compare more accurately later on.
4. Observe Staff and Residents
During your visits, pay attention to how the staff and residents interact. Are the staff supportive? Do they spend time having conversations with individual residents? Also take note of how happy and engaged other residents are. Do they seem like their needs are being met?
5. Check Safety and Cleanliness
There are high standards in place for cleanliness and safety in care environments. When finding a care home, pay attention to how clean all areas of the home look. This means common areas as well as residents’ rooms and washing facilities. Also look for what security and safety measures they have in place.
6. Ask About Daily Life and Activities
Good questions to ask a care home are about day-to-day life and what activities they provide for residents. A well-rounded care environment should be enriching and engaging, with regular activities and supportive routines to meet the holistic needs of residents.
7. Understand Costs and Funding Options
Make sure you get a thorough understanding of the costs involved in each care home you review. Some homes will attempt to hide fees, so read the small print and be on the lookout for surprise charges. Also, determine where the money for your loved one’s care will come from and whether they may be eligible for additional support or government funding.
8. Review Health and Medical Support
A major factor in choosing a care home is whether that facility can cater to your loved one’s health needs. Do they operate a round-the-clock care staff? Are there specialists on-hand for more complex requirements? It’s important to see how the home handles routine health needs such as medication too.
9. Ask About Family Involvement
Also high on the list of questions to ask a care home is about the level of family involvement. It’s important to know that you can continue to play an active role in your loved one’s care. Check visitation policies and how the staff communicate with families.
10. Trust Your Instincts
Our final and perhaps most important tip is to trust your instincts. If something doesn’t feel right, trust your gut. The opposite is true too, if you get a good feeling about a home, it’s usually for a reason. However, also remember that choosing a care home is an important decision – there’s no rush, so take your time and do what you feel is right.
How Runwood Can Help
Hopefully, these tips have helped simplify how to choose a care home. Runwood Homes is one of the UK’s leading care home operators. We pride ourselves on our high standards of resident wellbeing and prioritise a holistic approach to care. Our homes are highly rated, scoring an average of 9.7/10 on Carehome.co.uk.
Find a care home near you in just a few clicks using our simple search tool. For more information, just reach out to our friendly team. You can call us on 0800 254 5996, email us at info@runwoodhomes.co.uk or fill out our contact form.
