Different Care Facility Types

Are you new to the senior housing world? Confused about all the terms?

Here is a brief overview to help you search for appropriate services:

Independent Living (IL) – senior housing without any services.  The building may offer amenities, such as a continental breakfast or pickleball court, but they don’t offer home health aides.

 

Assisted Living (AL)– Home Health Aide and Nursing services are offered, along with dining and housekeeping.  Most large facilities charge for each service you use, so the higher the need, the higher the cost.

 

Assisted Living with Dementia Care (ALDC)/ Memory Care (MC)– These facilities have additional training and licensing requirements to be able to advertise that they care for people with a dementia / Alzheimer’s diagnosis.

 

Enhanced Suites – Some larger facilities will designate a small number of rooms to accommodate those with higher needs, such as a mechanical lift, diabetic care, feeding tubes, etc.

 

Long Term Care (LTC)– This is the traditional nursing home. Most have private rooms now and are quite nice.

 

Transitional Care Unit (TCU)– A place to recover after an illness or injury. They are focused on rehabilitation and will discharge once no more progress can be made.

 

Continuum of Care – A reference to large campus facilities that may have IL, AL, MC.  You typically have to move to a different apartment if you need more care. There are some that let you “age in place”, meaning the IL and AL will be mixed in the same building.

 

Residential Care Homes – These are homes in regular neighborhoods that have been modified to meet the needs of aging seniors.  Arthur’s Senior Care is a Residential Care Home.  Our homes can do a high level of care, including feeding tubes, oxygen, diabetic care, catheters, ostomies, mechanical lifts, modified diets, and more.  For a list of residential care homes go to www.residentialcaremn.org.

 

Some facilities will take Medicaid Waiver funding (the Elderly Waiver) but most will not.  To search for the type of provider in your chosen area you can use a couple of resources: www.seniorsbluebook.com or http://www.seniorhousinginc.org/ (we’re on page 87!)

One last note, if you need help navigating this crazy world, you may utilize the services of a Senior Care Advisor, who act as a referral agent to housing providers. There is no cost to you – the fees are paid by the provider.  Most of these agents will gently walk you through all the steps to find the appropriate place for your loved one and take you to just two or three places.  Some great Senior Care Advisors who offer in-person assistance are https://twincitiescare.com/, https://choiceconnections.com/; and https://www.carepatrol.com/.  Avoid the largest referral agencies as they don’t listen carefully to your needs and will give your contact information out to many providers.

 

If you have any questions, contact:

Deb Nygaard at Arthur’s Senior Care

Phone: 651-294-4798