No one wants to have to make the decision to place a loved one in a skilled nursing facility—or what’s commonly known as a nursing home. Many places don’t even refer to their facilities as nursing homes anymore because of the negative connotation the phrase has.
Of course, with the reports I’ve seen and read lately, I can hardly blame them. There are so many horror stories about abuse and neglect; I can’t imagine how frightening it must look to someone whose only exposure to this industry are those reports.
The truth is, there are bad apples everywhere, and there are also good places that may have messed up. The important thing is that there are excellent facilities that strive to put the interests of their residents first. There are even impressive things happening in long-term care and assisted living: programs designed to improve the quality of residents’ lives.
One of these programs is called resident-centered care. Essentially, this means the staff is mindful that while they may work in a facility, the residents live there. It’s their home, and the staff must act accordingly. Some examples include an assisted living facility with menus from which residents select their meals; however, if there isn’t something suitable, they can special-order their meal. Some places are working to de-institutionalize their facilities as much as they can. In your own home, you get up and go to sleep when you want to—you don’t depend on someone else’s schedule.
You might wonder how it’s possible to really get to know anyone in some of these facilities with more than 100 residents, but there are always creative people who care. One facility is working with residents to make memory boxes (shadow boxes). They will fill these with pictures and memorabilia of things that matter to them. Not only does this help staff learn more about the resident, but it also helps residents who may get confused to remember which room is theirs.
I suppose, more than anything, I hope this offers a small bit of encouragement to people who may be faced with looking into some kind of care either for themselves or a loved one. Don’t run screaming; there are good places. You just need to do your homework. Make sure you visit the facility and meet the people who work there; if they really care about the people they work with, you’ll know. TPW