If you have elderly parents who you can’t look after anymore, then you are probably considering moving them into a residential care home. Moving your parents into a residential care home is a big decision, and so, requires a lot of planning and forethought.

There are many things that you need to consider before you can commit to a specific care home, from their daily routine to the activities that are offered. Bear in mind, the better a care home is, the more expensive is.

Here’s a guide to choosing the right one:

Level of Care

Before sending your parent to a care home, you need to be confident that they can offer your parent the level of care that they need. Residents in a care home, according to the professionals from Elmfield Care Home in Woking, should feel safe, secure, and valued. These things can only be achieved when a patient has the level of care that they need provided to them. You can find out about a care home’s level of care by reading reviews and by communicating with other people whose parents are there.

Current Vacancies

If you don’t take the time to find out whether a residential home has vacancies or not, you can disappoint your parent. You mustn’t tell them they are going somewhere unless you have extensively researched them and are confident they have patient vacancies. If the care home that you want to send your parent to doesn’t have any vacancies, then you should be able to put your parent on the care home’s patient list. They gradually work through this list, calling people up when it’s their turn to move in. These lists are usually worked through very quickly.  

Reading Brochures

In addition to reading reviews online, you should read the brochures provided to you by the care home as part of their introduction package. These brochures will tell you what activities they offer, as well as what a day in the life of a patient is like. This can give you insight into how your parent will be treated when they move in. You should find out information about what they will be fed, what exercise programmes they will be offered, and what the level of care provided is like. You will also likely find out information about the quality of staff there.

Inspection Reports

It is very important to read a care home’s inspection report before you commit to sending your parents there. Even if the reviews are good and they look good on paper, if they have had a poor inspection report you should not send your parents there. Inspections reports are published online and are available for everybody to view. In order to find a home’s inspection report, identify which government agency is responsible for inspecting care homes in your area, and contact them. Inspection reports are free to access and can be downloaded straight to your computer. You don’t need to request them.

If you are moving your parent into a care home, then you need to follow this article’s advice, and carefully vet a care home. You shouldn’t ever send them anywhere that you aren’t confident is a good fit for them.